


Flowers from a Distant Past

by MelodicGamer



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Angst, Deviates From Canon, Eventual Smut, F/M, Feelings, Feels, Fight Scenes, Flashbacks, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Forbidden Love, Happy sometimes, I'm Bad At Tagging, Lore - Freeform, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other Zelda game references, POV Third Person, Pining, Previous incarnation is a Hylian, Previous incarnation is an oc, Reader is a Hylian, Reader-Insert, Reincarnation, Slow Burn, Swearing, Tags Are Hard, When you have to change the minor swearing tag to straight up swearing cause you have a dirty mouth, big sad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-24
Updated: 2019-11-03
Packaged: 2019-11-04 16:16:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 25
Words: 65,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17901413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelodicGamer/pseuds/MelodicGamer
Summary: Link lost everything a hundred years ago. He lost his friends, his family, and his home.But worst of all, he lost her. His everything.Now years later he arises from the Shrine of Resurrection to take back the world from Calamity Ganon with no memory of his past.Meanwhile miles away from the Great Plateau lies a stable by two distinct peaks; a girl works there and enjoys her humble life. However, she is unaware that she is the reincarnation of Link’s lover from a century ago.





	1. My Name is...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and thank you for clicking on this story!
> 
> This is my first fic in a really long time so please excuse the bad spelling/grammar/writing
> 
> Also there are a few things I would like to clear up before continuing.
> 
> As the tag mentioned before the reader's previous carnation is going to have her own name and hair color/style (I also marked 100 year old carnation as an original character cause I didn't know how else to describe it) the reason I'm giving her her own name and appearance is because Link is still the same Link from 100 years ago so when he begins to get his memory back he's gonna be confused on why the heck two people a century apart look the same and have the same name (and no time preserving capsule thingy excuse can be made like it can with Zelda). If it makes you feel better however I'm making her have the same eye color as whatever you have (because eyes are the window to the soul - haha sorry bad joke) so flashbacks will still contain (e/c) inserts.
> 
> Flashbacks will also be italicized.  
> Will also try to keep as much to canon as possible but I may change some events around like order of memories from the game
> 
> Hopefully this note cleared up some things.
> 
> Now let's get right into this!

Link sighs in frustration as he looks at the map on his sheikah slate once again.

 

He’s been walking for hours and still no sign of any sort of civilization. He’s seen trees, mountains, bokoblins, and anything else you could think of, but has yet to see another person besides the old man on the Great Plateau (and he turned out to be a spirit).

 

Link bites the inside of his cheek as he reaches a small bridge. From there he saw a sight that brought life back into his dreary eyes. A person.

 

He quickly sprints over to the man. By the time he gets there he bends over to catch his breath, having run out of stamina.

 

“Uh, you okay there?” The man questions.

 

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine,” Link replies as he stands straight up.

 

“I was just wondering where Kakariko Village is.”

 

“Kakariko Village? Just keep following this road and you should reach it eventually.”

 

“Eventually?”

 

“Yeah, probably will take about half a day for you to walk over there.”

 

Link unintentionally exhales in frustration. He was hoping the village was closer than expected. How he longed to see some sort of life besides wilderness and ruin. Link looks over at the bridge and gets up on the edge looking up at the horizon as the sun rises. So this is Hyrule.

 

Link takes in the sight and squints his eyes to see if he could see more in the distance. He needs something, anything to spark his memory of his past. Was he really asleep for 100 years? Surely the land should’ve recovered more by then; more towns should be around by now since the Calamity - unless the destruction was really that bad. Goddesses, what were they up against? Can he really do this? He can’t even take down a bokoblin camp without feeling exhaustion take a toll on him. How was he suppose to face an evil strong enough to challenge the Goddesses of old? Maybe he should just-

 

Link is immediately ripped out of his trace by a rough tug on the back of his shirt and yanked back onto the bridge.

 

“Woah woah woah! Hey I know Kakariko is far away but that’s no reason to end it all”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Look if you need to talk about something I’m here. We can go back to my campfire and-“

 

“No no it’s fine! I’m fine,” Link quickly says as he adjusts his straps awkwardly. “I was just thinking is all about...what I’m going to have for dinner tonight!”

 

The man looks at him hesitantly before letting out a soft chuckle. The concern in his eyes have yet to fade.

 

“Alright just...don’t try anything stupid.”

 

Link nods. “I won’t.”

 

Link begins to walk past the man.

 

“One more thing.”

 

Link stops and turns his head around. “Yes?”

 

“On the way to Kakariko, there should be a stable. Just look for the building with the giant horse head.”

 

Link nods. “Thank you...uh...”

 

"Brigo. My name is Brigo."

 

Link nods.

 

"I'm Link. I'll see you around."

 

Link waves goodbye and with that he walks out of the man’s sight.

 

 ***

 

 “I finished bottling the milk,” the young girl cheers.

 

“Excellent, Agus should be here any minute to pick it up,” Tasseren calls out from behind the counter.

 

The girl smiles as she lays the bottled milk to the side. She goes over to the hylian retriever with beautiful white fur covered in orange and black patches.

 

“Hi Violet, how are you?”

 

The dog barks excitedly as she wags her tail.

 

The girl smiles at this and picks up a stick. Violet notices this with her golden eyes and begins to fixate on the stick.

 

“Here, catch.”

 

The stick is thrown in the air and Violet goes sprinting towards it. The young hylian chuckles due to Violet’s joy.

 

The girl looks up at the sky as she takes off her hat and tosses it onto a tree stump. She runs her fingers through her (y/h/c) hair and sighs to herself. The afternoon sky is beautiful with no cloud shielding the land from the sun. It hasn’t been this nice of weather in a long time.

 

“Finally. A day without rain,” she says to herself.

 

The retriever returns with the stick in front of her feet.

 

“Aw who’s a good girl? You are. -You- are.”

 

Violet barks cheerily and pounces on the stable girl. She squeals as she hits the ground and gets covered in kisses. She shuts her eyes tightly and laughs as she receives Violet's love.

 

This treatment only lasted for a few seconds as Violet got distracted and began barking at the traveler who approached them silently.

 

The girl sits up, confused at why the dog stopped licking her, only for her eyes to lock on to bright blue eyes. She feels her voice get caught in her throat as she keeps looking into them. That shade of blue is enough to put the sky to shame.

 

"This is the stable right?"

 

She blinks out of her thoughts quickly after hearing the boy's voice and stands up and brushes the dirt off of her.

 

"Yes welcome to Dueling Peaks Stable. You can talk to someone at the counter and they might assist you with a horse or bed."

 

He nods and heads over to where Tasseren is.

 

The girl began to absent-mindedly exam the boy. To be honest it looks like he's been through hell with the dirt all over his face and worn out clothes. But besides the minor issues due to tidiness he didn't seem that bad. And his eyes - oh those eyes, she could get lost in them for days.

 

Rensa's booming voice rose her out of her daze and into the present.

 

"Tell you what kid, I'll give you an award you won't forget if you are able to beat my horse taming time."

 

The boy only simply nods as he walks off into the field. Rensa snickers.

 

"He's never gonna beat it."

 

"Mhm you sure about that," Tasseren snorts out.

 

"Absolutely! Bokoblins can come take me if I'm wrong- oh what the fuck?!"

 

The golden hair boy comes charging on a horse with a beautiful bay coat. What caught everyone's attention however, was the horse's gorgeous platinum blonde mane.

 

Tasseren unfortunately was not able to see the horse as he was too busy laughing at his brother's stupidity.

 

"You're so full of it!"

 

"Quiet you!"

 

The boy jumps down from his horse and jogs over to Rensa.

 

"So...where's my reward?"

 

Rensa grumbles as he rummages through his pockets and takes out a silver rupee.

 

"Here take it."

 

"Thank you."

 

The boy looks over at Tasseren who is wiping away tears from laughing so hard.

 

"Can I register my horse?"

 

Tasseren soon calms down and takes out a book along with a quill and ink jar.

 

"Sure sure now I just need a name - "

 

Tasseren nearly drops everything as he finally takes in the sight before him, his jaw drops.

 

"Uh...hello?"

 

The boy waves a hand over the man's face. Still the man stares.

 

"Is that who I think it is...is that....Epona?"

 

The boy raises his eyebrows in confusion.

 

"Epona?"

 

"They say that 100 years ago there was this Hylian Champion who had a horse name Epona. They're bond was inseparable and one of a kind. This horse must be a descendent of her."

 

"Epona huh..." the boy trails off and he looks up and down the horse, he smiles for the first time that day.

 

"That sounds like a beautiful name for her."

 

"Oh oh wait hold on I got the perfect saddle for - huh? Where did it go? Rensa did you take it? I know you're a sore loser but come on."

 

"No, I took it."

 

They all turned around to meet the eyes of the stable girl. She has a bridle and saddle in her hands.

 

"Sorry I overheard your conversation and took the liberty of getting it out for you Tasseren."

 

"Oh, why thank you."

 

The girl smiles and walks over to the boy.

 

"Congratulation....uh"

 

"Link. My name's Link"

 

The girl nods.

 

"Congratulations Link."

 

She holds out the bridle and saddle for him to take. Link looks down at it and begins to admire the craftsmanship of it. He smiles at the detailed triforce designs on the saddle and how well it was etched into the leather. Some stitching of the leather is ununiformed and crocked however, but something about the imperfectness of it is what made it endearing.

 

Just then Link's mind blanks out and begins to see something unlike reality.

 

***

 

_Link stands in a stall in the Castle Stable besides Epona brushing her coat gently. From there he hears footsteps and looks up and smiles._

 

_"Oh hey Thea."_

 

_Thea, the black haired girl, smiles as she approaches, holding something behind her back._

 

_"You sound so surprised. Did you really think I was going to miss Epona's birthday?"_

 

_He chuckles._

 

_"I mean...you have been busy lately."_

 

_"Not busy enough to miss out on this."_

 

_"So what's this year's present for her? Carrots? Apples?"_

_"I was actually thinking something different."_

 

_Thea looks down a bit as Link climbs over the fence of the stall._

 

_"What is it?"_

 

_"This."_

 

_She pulls from behind her back a bridle and saddle._

 

_"Tada"_

 

_She smiles nervously as Link takes in the sight._

 

_"Well...what do you think?"_

 

_"It's..."_

 

_Link takes it in his hands._

 

_"It's beautiful."_

 

_"Really? I-I made it myself. S-sorry for the atrocious stitching I really tried."_

 

_Link shakes his head._

 

_"Don't worry Thea, I'm sure Epona will love it either way."_

 

_Before Thea could say anything else a soldier comes running in._

 

_"Link sorry to disturb you but we can't seem to find the princess."_

 

_Link's eyes widen as he hangs Epona's gift over the stall._

 

_"How? I just left her for a second so she could get dress-...I know where she went, don't worry about it I'll get her."_

 

_"Alright."_

 

_The soldier leaves._

 

_"Link, what was all that?"_

 

_Link sighs as he opens up a stall and puts a saddle on a chocolate coated horse._

 

_"Zelda wanted to go see an ancient site in the Tabantha region the other day but the king didn't want her to go without me so she decided to just stay here locked in her room...she must have left to go there while I was distracted."_

 

_Link finishes setting up and climbs on top of the horse._

 

_"Don't worry I'll be back before you know it."_

 

_"Why aren't you taking Epona?"_

 

_He looks away nervously and bites his bottom lip._

 

_"I uh...I figured she deserves the day off. She's the birthday girl after all."_

 

_"Epona is afraid of the princess isn't she?"_

_...._

_...._

 

_"Bye Thea!"_

 

_Before Thea could even react he was out the door of the stable. She couldn't help but laugh at him and his dorkiness._

 

***  
 

"Well...are you going to take it or just stand there?"

 

Link shakes his head as he tries to come back to reality.

 

"Yeah...yeah sorry about that."

 

He takes the bridle and saddle from the girl and puts it on Epona. He climbs onto her.

 

"You're not staying for the night?"

 

"Sorry no, I gotta get to Kakariko Village as soon as possible."

 

"Alright well just remember we're here if you need a place to rest."

 

"Thank you."

 

Link ushers Epona to start galloping towards the village. About halfway to Kakariko Bridge from the stable did something don on him.

 

"Wait what's your name," he shouts at the top of his lungs so the stable girl could hear.

 

"(y/n)! My name is (y/n)!"

 

"Thank you! I'll make sure to remember you!"

 

(y/n) crosses her arms and shakes her head. 

 

"You better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoo boy it's done.
> 
> Sorry for all the sentences containing "the girl" and "the boy", I wanted to save Link's and reader's name until the end because that's when they finally know each other's fully, before they're just strangers to each other.
> 
> Anyways thank you so much for reading! Will update soon!


	2. There He Was

"Impa...there is actually one last thing I want to ask you before I go."

 

The old woman lifts her head up with much effort. 

 

"What is it Link?"

 

"I think...I think I might have remembered something."

 

Impa's eyes widen suddenly gaining interest.

 

"Was it about the princess?"

 

"No not really, she was mentioned though, but in the memory I was with this girl...she gave me the saddle my horse has on now back then...I think...I think her name was Thea...she seemed like she was a servant of some kind...do you know her?"

 

Impa frowns a little.

 

"I'm afraid I do not know who you are talking about. While serving the royal family I have seen many servants and knew many of their names. Unfortunately in my old age I do not remember most of the names. I am sorry Link."

 

"No it's okay."

 

Link leaves the building with more questions than answer a frown plastered on his face him.

 

"Perhaps I will stay at the inn for the night and then head to Hateno like Impa said. I'll probably stop by the dueling peaks stable on my way to Hateno to get supplies. I can talk to that girl again too."

 

And with that he head into the inn to get a good night's rest.

 

***  
  


Impa watched him leave and lowers her head in thought.

 

"I wonder," she thought. "I wonder why the first person he remembers from his past is a servant and not the princess...was Zelda not as important to him as I anticipated?"

 

***  
  


The sun rose up to mark a new day and everyone was on edge at the stable. Tasseren and Rensa muttering worries under their breath, the twin kids crying, and (y/n) pacing back and forth in front of the stable while fiddling with a piece of leather in her hands to calm her nerves.

 

A neigh from a horse kicks (y/n) out of her thoughts and she looks up to see a sight she subconsciously wanted to see. There was Epona returning to the stables along with her companion Link.

 

Epona stops in front of the stable and Link hops down from her. He looks more rested and clean since the last time she saw him now wearing a freshly tailored green and red tunic along with a navy blue cloak, tan pants, and brown boots. He looks around at the state of the stable and his eyes quickly fill with worry.

 

“What happened?”

 

“B-bokoblins...” (y/n) try to murmur out before looking away from him. “Bokoblins attacked us last night. No one got hurt but...they took all our goats. We know there’s a camp around Ash Swamp with bokoblins, but we never thought they would come to attack us for resources.”

 

She looks up with tears threatening to fall.

 

“It’s my fault they got kidnapped I should have protected them better.”

 

She hears Link begin to walk away from her. She looks up to see that he is heading straight towards Ash Swamp.

 

“Wait where are you going?”

 

Link turns towards her with a calm and composed look on his face.

 

“I’m going to get the goats back”

 

“Wh- you can’t take on a bokoblin camp all by yourself. You’ll die!”

 

Link simply shrugs and continues to walk.

 

(Y/n) huffs out loud and grabs the nearest object that could be used as a weapon - a pitchfork. She runs over and blocks his path.

 

“I’m coming with you.”

 

“You can’t it’s too dangerous.”

 

“Well two people facing bokoblins is better than one.”

 

“I’ll be fine.”

 

“Link please!”

 

Link stays silent as his piercing blue eyes stare into her (e/c) eyes. He sighs as he caves in.

 

“Fine, but you have to stay close to me.”

 

“I will”

 

***

 

The sun blazes brightly as bokoblins dance around their fire. Another one is standing on a small watchtower sniffing around. The creatures had the goats locked up around a fence that was sloppily made out of scrap wood and bricks. Link and (y/n) were both hiding behind a decayed guardian. (Y/n) would be lying if she said she wasn’t scared. She knew the surrounding area and towns like Kakariko and Hateno, but she never visited them. She was always content to just staying at the stables for the rest of her life. And now here she is sitting next to a man she just met two days ago, going to fight monsters who took the stable’s goats. Goats for crying out loud. She was going to risk her life for goats.

 

But they weren’t just goats - they were her friends and one of the only things she’s ever know. Along with that their milk was one of the main sources of income to the stable besides their inn and horse business, and she was willing to fight against her fears for them.

 

Link notices her nerves and grabs onto her shoulder. She looks up with big (e/c) eyes filled with anxiety. He spoke to her in a calm whisper.

 

“You’ll be okay. Just follow my lead.”

 

(Y/n) slowly nods in response. Link’s lips curled a little into a small smile for reassurance before reverting back to his serious face and changing his view on the enemy. Link extends his bow and aims it toward the bokoblin on watch. He let out a breath before releasing the arrow straight into the bokoblin’s head. It cries as it hits the ground.

 

(Y/n) winces at the monster’s cry but is quick to feel Link’s hand on her wrist. He looks at her one more time and she could see it in his eyes that he wanted to make sure she was still going through with it. She simply nods and that’s when it started.

 

Link climbs on top of the decayed guardian and jumps up while taking his bow out. As if time stood still he head shot three bokoblins before (y/n) could react to this reckless behavior. He hit the ground and quickly took out his knife. (Y/n) ran forward toward the weaker ones of the pack and stab them with her pitchfork. Some of them try to attack her from behind but she uses the wooden end of the pitch fork to hit them in the gut. It was getting close to the end before a blue bokoblin comes out of nowhere and jumps in the air to hit her head with his club. (Y/n) is quick to react and uses her pitchfork to block. The bokoblin pushes against the pitchfork with enough force to cause (y/n) to fall onto the ground. He tries again to hit her head but she holds the pitchfork side ways to block. Both sides try to hold their ground but the monster was stronger and slowly she could hear the body of her weapon crack under the pressure and sharp bones from the club threatening to cut her throat.

 

Just then an arrow goes right straight through the bokoblins head. (Y/n) stares at the now dead monster in shock, the arrow poking out of his head and even some blood drips onto her face. She screams and tosses the monster onto the ground and stands up, panting heavily due to the recent trauma and exhaustion. Link quickly runs over while putting his bow away and turns her around to face him concern painted on his face.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“I-I don’t know.”

 

Link looks over her body from head to toe, turning her every so often to make sure he doesn’t miss a spot. Honestly this made (y/n) uncomfortable. She wasn’t use to a man handling her much less examining her so intently. She knew his intentions were innocent but still, it had her thinking other things.

 

“It doesn’t see like you were hurt physically.” Link lets go of her after he made his conclusion. He takes out a cloth from his pocket and a canteen of water. He pours some water onto the cloth and begins to wipe the blood off her face. (Y/n) blushes at this intimacy. Out of embarrassment she pushes him away.

 

“S-stop! I can do it myself!”

 

Link looks at her in confusion He didn’t understand why she was so uncomfortable about it. He was just washing her face, what’s so wrong about that?

 

“Sorry,” He says quietly as he puts away the cloth.

 

“No no it’s fine,” she speaks, instantly feeling regret set in from her action. “I shouldn’t have pushed you, you saved me after all and I thank you for that. Is…” she pauses unsure of how he will respond. “Is there any way I can pay you back?”

 

Link looks away and stays silent for a while in thought. (Y/n) felt her cheeks heat up out of her own awkwardness.

 

“Dear Hylia did I do something wrong?” She thought to herself.

 

Slowly Link looks back at her.

 

“You can return the favor by giving me a nice cooked meal.”

 

***  
 

The rice and mushrooms were sizzling in the cooking pot as (y/n) stirred the ingredients together to make sure the rice comes to a creamy consistency.

 

“I hope you like risotto Link”

 

She hears no response from the man sitting next to her by the fire.

 

“…Link?”

 

She looks over at him to see his head hanging down. She moves closer to see that his eyes are closed and his breathing is slow and steady. She smiles to herself.

 

“Guess today was a little too much for our reckless.”

 

She snickers to herself at the thought of what happened earlier. After they cleared the camp they freed the goats from their confinement. Link offered to help even though he never had any past experience with herding. He was in fact quite a natural until one of the goats got pissy and rammed itself into his gut. The look on his face when he got hit was priceless.

 

She smiles at the thought and she puts the risotto into a wooden bowl for herself. She takes a bite out of it and savors the warmth and creamy texture.

 

“Too bad he’s asleep to enjoy this,” she thought to herself.

 

She looked again if there was any activity going on with him. He was still fast asleep.

 

(Y/n) took the time to admire his features up close. His bangs were covering a bit of his face along with parts of his eyes but she didn’t mind that. His hair was a nice shade of gold that radiated in the sun, but it still was a pretty color at night. She moves closer to him and gently brushes his bangs out of his face. He shifts a little from the touch, but it wasn’t enough to wake him up fully. She smiles a little and goes back to eating while replaying everything that happened today in her head. The one memory that stuck to her however was when he placed his hand on her wrist right before they faced the monsters head on. There was so much worry on his face so much concern. He had the same look on his face after he saved her and while he was examining her for any wounds.

 

In a world where the wilderness makes every man only care for himself here he was. The one person who put others first before himself.

 

And he barely ask for any praise or anything in return. It was difficult enough for him to ask for a free meal.

 

(Y/n) finishes her bowl of risotto and packs up the rest. She looks back over at the sleeping man and heads in the inn. She comes back with a wool blanket and wraps it around him.

 

“You really are special Link,” she murmurs to herself.

 

She sits back down by the fire.

 

“Some day I’ll pay you back properly.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed that! I'll try to update soon!


	3. Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey fellas! As I am typing this it is officially botw's 2nd birthday woo hoo! So you know I HAD to update in honor of it.
> 
> Also thank you all for 20 Kudos! I know it doesn't seem much, but to me it is because I am just so happy this story is liked by others because I enjoy writing it.
> 
> Also this chapter might be more of a backstory chapter, so I hope you are a sucker for backstory like I am

_It was a miserable day. There was rain pouring on Hyrule since morning with no sign of lighting up. Yet there she was, a seven year old, out in the rain._

 

_Thea was outside wandering around in the castle garden humming to herself. She knew she shouldn’t be there, being a servant and all, but everyone was inside due to the rain so no one can tell her otherwise._

 

_Well almost everyone._

 

_In the distance she hears metal clash against each other in the directions of the training grounds. Thea stops her ambling as the metal clashes became more frequent._

 

_“Are people still practicing? I thought everyone went inside because of the rain, and the king his having a meeting anyways with the royal guard so why are there noises?”_

 

_Sudden worse case scenarios race in her head. Is there a prisoner on the loose? An intruder? Townspeople trying to break in due to the new tax laws? A rat stuck in a can? A HUGE rat stuck in a can?_

 

_Thea’s head kept running crazy as she went over to the training grounds. She stops when she gets there to see that all her theories are wrong, but it was something she never expected to see._

 

_There he was. A small boy about her age with his hair so soaked due to the rain that his natural blonde hair looked almost brown. He’s practically out of breath and shivering as he stands in fighting position. Clothes soaked through and clinging to his skin, he swings his sword - which by the way was twice his size - towards a dummy made of straw. The sword gets stuck in the dummy’s body and the boy tries to pull the sword out._

 

_“What are you doing,” Thea cried out “get inside!”_

 

_The boy pays no mind and he finally breaks the sword loose from the dummy he goes back to his original position to hit it again._

 

_“Are you deaf?! Get inside!”_

 

_The boy lifts the sword was last time with all his might before collapsing to the ground._

 

_Thea gasps as she runs over to him. Oh god did she scare him? Did he fall asleep? Is he dead? Is he dead because she scared him?_

 

_She pushed all her thoughts to the side as she kneels beside him. She wasn’t sure what exactly is wrong with him, but she knows someone who could help him. Will all her strength she picks him up and carries him inside._

 

***

 

_Lenus was organizing his medical books when she came in._

 

_“Thea, what are you doing here,” the elder hylian says as he adjusts his glasses to better see her._

 

_“I- I was outside and I saw this boy- and then he past out - did I kill him?”_

 

_The old man shakes his head and kneels down to take the boy out from her arms._

 

_“No dear, you’ve done nothing wrong.”_

 

_The man examines the boy and his frown becomes more plastered on his face._

 

_“Lenus…What’s wrong?”_

 

_“He has hypothermia. Quickly Thea, get some spare blankets while I change him into dry clothes.”_

 

_“Yes sir!”_

 

_The both of them hurry as fast as they can to help him._

 

***

 

_Link wakes up in a bed and place he is unfamiliar with. Link rises in confusion before being pushed down. Usually Link could be able to resist this force but he was so weak he couldn’t._

 

_“Don’t get up, Lenus told me that you need to rest.”_

 

_Link looks at the direction of the voice and sees a girl his age with hair the color of the night sky and (e/c) eyes._

 

_“Where am I,” he is able to say weakly._

 

_“Lenus’s. He has a private place for himself in the castle since he’s the court physician.”_

 

_“Why am I-“ Link’s voice gets cut off as the door in the other room slams open and a pair of heavy boots come trudging in. Link’s words get caught in his throat at the realization of who it is._

 

_“Where’s my son,” the voice ask Lenus in the other room. The sudden silence of everything makes his voice cut through the air even more._

 

_“He is now in my care sir.”_

 

_“May I ask why?”_

 

_“Not before I ask you why in the name of Hylia is your seven year old son in a rainstorm all by himself.”_

 

_“He was training.”_

 

_“His training gave him hypothermia, if it wasn’t for my assistant finding him he might’ve died.”_

 

_“Why was your assistant outside then?”_

 

_“How long was your son outside?”_

 

_“Why are you avoiding my question?!”_

 

_“Why are you avoiding mine?!”_

 

_The argument got more and more heated in the other room. Thea looks over to see Link’s head lowered and almost in tears sitting in bed - even though he isn’t suppose to be using his strength. His fists were holding onto the wool blankets tightly, shaking a little as he tries to not cry, all of this was his fault after all had he been stronger he would have never passed out and his father would be proud of him instead of mad. Quickly, she takes hold of his hand. He flinches at this contact and looks at her with big eyes full of guilt and remind her of what a puppy looks like after knocking a pot over and breaking it. Thea also gets startled at her actions. She’s never comforted someone like this before what was she thinking? She may suck at this, but damn it she can’t see him cry and not do anything about it._

 

_“You’re seven too?”_

 

_He nods._

 

_“Me too. I’m Thea what’s your name?”_

 

_He’s stays silent._

 

_“Come on what is it? I’m not gonna laugh at it.”_

 

_“…Link”_

 

_“Link? That’s a cool name!”_

 

_Link smiles shyly, and Thea lets out a laugh, excited that her efforts are working for the most part._

 

_“Let’s be friends okay?”_

 

_Link nods._

 

_“Cool, let me grab you some tea to warm you up.”_

 

_Thea goes to let go of his hand but he quickly grabs hold of it again. Thea looks up at him confused._

 

_“What’s wrong?”_

 

_“Can you…” he pauses as his shyness holds back his words._

 

_“Can I what?”_

 

_Shouting comes from the other room and Link holds onto her hand tightly and shuts his eyes._

 

_“P-Please…”_

 

_Thea puts her other hand on top of his, knowing what he wants before he had to finish his statement._

 

_“Don’t worry, I’ll stay until it’s over.”_

 

_“Thank you.”_

 

_“That’s what friends are for.”_

 

***

 

(Y/n) jolts up from bed covered in sweat and shivering. She had to look around her surroundings for a few minutes to realize that she is in her room in the stable and not…where ever she was before. What the hell was that? It all seemed too real - the garden, the rain, the old medicine man, the room, everything, it was all too real. Thea was the girl’s name right? Why did that name feel so right to her? And that boy - he seemed so familiar - his name was Link right? Isn’t that?

 

(Y/n) freezes in her thoughts at the connection of the traveler to the kid in her dream. She looks outside remembering that’s it been a few days since her last interaction with him, and with how busy the stables have been she honestly forgot about him for a minute. Now he’s back, and he returned in the weirdest way possible.

 

“No no (y/n) pull yourself together. Dreams do weird shit like this,” she reasons with herself.

 

Sighing to herself she lays back in bed and closes her eyes, hoping that that dream will be one she forgets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pretty sure Lenus is a mood


	4. Reality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lack of reader in this chapter, hopefully Purah makes up for it
> 
> Also there will be a lot of changes from canon to make the story more interesting. I hope it's not too jarring.

“Yes! Yes! Look at my beautiful furnace up and running again! We’re back in business Symin!”

 

Just as the little sheikah girl jumps for joy the door slams open to reveal Link, soaked head to toe from the rain and holding a now wet torch. He glares from under his hood towards the young director.

 

“Now will you fix my slate,” he says with bitterness seething through his clenched teeth.

 

“Huh, oh yeah I almost forgot about that,” the girl giggles and hops off her chair grabbing the slate and walking over to the now blue glowing pedestal. She places the sheikah slate there and the restoration process begins. Link watches as the stone above the pedestal forms a strange blue liquid that drips onto the sheikah slate and gets evaporated by it. This sheikah technology is cool and all but Link knows that he will never truly understand it.

 

“All done! Let’s see what it restored,” the director picks up the slate and examines it before squealing and jumping up and down in joy.

 

“Yes yes yes! It has my favorite feature now!”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“The camera!”

 

“Camera?”

 

“Yes, it’s a feature that created real to life images with just a push of a button here try it out.”

 

She quickly puts the slate in Link’s hands before putting her hands on her hips and smiling.

 

“Go on, take a picture of me.”

 

Feeling as if he doesn’t have a choice in the matter he switches to the camera rune and holds it up so he can see Purah on the screen. He looks and sees a button on the side of the slate and figured it was the button she was talking about. He pushes it and it makes a sound that startled Link and almost caused him to drop the slate.

 

“Hehe looks like sheikah technology is still hitting you with fun surprises. Now come over and let me see the photo!”

 

Link comes over and shows it to her.

 

“Oh my who’s that gorgeous girl? Hehe it’s perfect. That’s definitely a keeper.”

 

Link swipes to the left and is exposed to a number of nature photos.

 

“Purah, who took these photos?”

 

Purah jumps back up on her stool to get a better look behind his shoulder.

 

“Hm well the princess was the last one to use this slate so my best guess is that these are photos taken by her…if I remember correctly you said you did remember one thing, what triggered the memory?”

 

“It was Epona’s saddle.”

 

“I see…perhaps physical locations and objects are what jogs your memory…if that’s the case then perhaps you should visit these locations on the sheikah slate to see if you can get something from it.”

 

“But I…I don’t know where any of these places are. Do you know?”

 

“Link I am a scientist not a traveler. In fact no one in Hateno really travels that often….bbbuuuttt,” Purah points her finger at a photo of a stone archway with trees behind it. “This does seem familiar, perhaps north of here.”

 

“That looks like the East Gate of Lanayru Road,” Symin, who by this time joined the other two in hopes he could help.

 

“Oh right right right of course I knew that,” Purah quickly states waving her hand to shoo Symin off.

 

“How far away from that?”

 

“A day, maybe two.”

 

Link signs at how long it will take, but by this time has made up his mind. He puts his slate away and looks at Purah.

 

“Alright, I’ll start heading over there at the crack of dawn.”

 

***  


Link waves goodbye to Symin and Purah, Purah still being half asleep. Link decided to leave Epona in their care until he returns, figuring it would be faster if he climbed the mountains to get there. Link, now looking more reassured in what he is doing, walks away from the lab and heads towards the gate.

 

“Man, he really is something else don’t ya think Symin,” Purah says as she yawns.

 

“Purah…why are you making him go there? You remember what his life was like all those years ago…why didn’t you just tell him?”

 

“Why do you think I made him get the blue flame in the rain when I had a perfectly capable assistant.”

 

Symin feels his body tense up at her statement as he begins to stutter. “I-I well um-“

 

“It’s to make him grow stronger as a person. Besides, memories are more impactful if you remember them by yourself than by the influence of others.”

 

“R-Right but still. You know those locations.”

 

“And I want him to find them on his own. It’ll make it more rewarding to him. Symin the bottom line is…”

 

Purah pauses and looks down, her youthful face suddenly looking older as distress washes over it.

 

“We need Link to find a reason to fight. He can’t just rush into battle not knowing who or what he is fighting for. Even if we tell him their stories, they will be nothing but stories to him. He has to experience these things on his own. It will be painful to remember what happened and have the wounds open up again, but he needs to know. You know the old saying Symin…a man who rushes into battle without a reason to fight might as well be considered dead.”

 

The pair grows silent with the only sound heard was from the wind blowing. Symin bites his bottom lip before speaking.

 

“But…Link died 100 years ago.”

 

Purah, due to her height, was only able to slap his leg, but she made sure it was a hard slap.

 

“He did not die he simply lost consciousness!”

 

***  


_“I’m sorry Link, but I feel like you are not ready to accept this task. Go to Hateno and let Purah fix the slate for now.”_

 

_“Why can’t I know the princess’s instructions now? I want to help. Calamity Ganon is looming over the castle for Hylia sake.”_

 

_“I know, and your courage and willingness to fight despite barely having any sort of memory is admirable and something I would expect from a Champion of Hyrule. Despite that however I feel like that is not enough.”_

 

_“What will be enough? I already feel like I’m ready.”_

 

_“Link, talk to Purah, and all will make sense soon.”_

 

Link bites his bottom lip and clenches his fist in frustration before jumping off the mountain and whipping out his paraglider. He didn’t understand anything Impa was blabbing to him. The King’s spirit wants him to kill Calamity Ganon, which has been plaguing the land for 100 years, and save his daughter. It seems like a good enough reason. What makes her think he isn’t ready? He was given a task so he should do it.

 

Link’s feet touch the ground and he puts away his paraglider. He looks up to see that he landed where he wanted to - right in front of the gate.

 

He pulls out his sheikah slate and looks up at the gate. The picture and the structure in front of him look practically identical. He squints his eyes before something in his head got triggered and he feels himself transcend into the past.

 

***  


_Link has been walking besides Princess Zelda all the way back to the gate where the other Champions were expecting her. During the whole walk there was nothing but silence between the two of them. Link didn’t feel like it was right to try to start up a conversation, especially considering the situation. Once again Zelda couldn’t awaken her powers. She couldn’t even hear Hylia talk to her. She began to cry in frustration and Link remembers vividly how he had to pull her out of the water because she was being so stubborn in leaving despite the fact that the freezing waters were not helping her physically._

 

_Link shivers at the memory and looks up to see that they finally made it to the gate. Revali, Mipha, Daruk, and Urbosa were all there. Link walks in front of Zelda to let them know subtly that they should go easy on her._

 

_“Well? Don’t keep us in suspense. How did everything go up there on the mountain?” Daruk of course was the first on to break the silence._

 

_Zelda looks up at her friend’s worried face before turning away in shame and slowly shake her head. Daruk looks at her heartbroken that she is so upset._

 

_“So you didn’t feel anything? No power at all?” Revali chimes in._

 

_“I’m sorry no…” Zelda could feel tears start to form._

 

_“Then let’s move on,” Urbosa interferes before the tears could fall from Zelda’s eyes. She always knew how to make Zelda feel better._

 

_“You’ve done all you could. Feeling sorry for yourself won’t get you anywhere. Besides, it not like your last shot was up at Mount Lanayru. We just gotta keep searching for that…thing.”_

 

_“Thank you…that’s very kind of you.”_

 

_“Princess,” the soft spoken Zora begins to speak._

 

_“If I may, I thought you....well I'm not sure how to put this into words....I'm actually quite embarrassed to say it. But I was thinking about what I do when I'm healing. You know what usually goes through my mind...it helps when I think-when I think about-"_

 

_Suddenly before Mipha could finish the ground shakes and Link quickly reaches over to prevent Zelda from falling. Without hesitation, Revali creates an updraft and soars to see what is going on. His whole body stiffens up before he flies back down._

 

_“It’s here,” he says, trying hard to keep his composure, but in his eyes there was panic._

 

_Zelda backed away in disbelief and spoke in a whisper. “It’s awake…Ganon.”_

_The thick clouds of red and purple smoke begin to spread along with claps of thunder and lightning._

 

_“Let’s stop wasting time,” Daruk barks out. “We’re gonna need everything we got to take that thing down! Now Champions, to your Divine Beasts! Show that swirling swine who’s boss! Link will need to meet Ganon head on when we attack. This needs to be a unified assault. Little guy, you get to Hyrule castle.”_

 

_Link looks at Daruk, who has eyes of confidence and pure belief in Link._

 

_“You can count on us for support, but it is up to you to pound Ganon into oblivion.”_

 

_Urbosa walks over and grabs onto Zelda’s shoulders._

 

_“Come, we should go. We need to get you someplace safe.”_

 

_“No, I’m not a child anymore! I may not be of much use on the battlefield, but there must be something I can do to help.”_

 

_Link felt his heart race as he looked at the growing clouds of calamity coming from the castle and Castle Town. His mouth murmured something barely audible._

 

_“Thea…”_

 

***  
 

Link gasp for air as he comes back to reality. He is breathing heavily and irregularly. As he tries to calm his breathing he begins to cough. This episode was way worse than the last one, but then again this one was more terrifying to witness. He looks around his surroundings before feeling his knees grow weak. He falls to the ground and at this point only has enough strength to hold onto the sheikah slate and stare at the photo blankly.

 

They failed. They tried and failed. Link knew the plan didn’t work, the king told him himself, but it didn’t hit him until now. It didn’t hit him until he saw the champions in the flesh ready to fight for Hyrule. It didn’t hit him until he saw the faith the goron had in him to beat Ganon head on.

 

And what did he do to repay the goron? By failing.

 

Everything Impa said finally made sense. This mission wasn’t just some simple task, it was to fix what was lost all those years ago. It was do something that he failed to do. He had to redeem himself, and bring his friends closure.

 

After finally calming down he stands up and runs towards Kakariko Village with a new purpose in mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again thank you so much for reading! Seeing people read this means the world to me! Will update soon!


	5. Budding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What better way to procrastinate on homework than to write a long ass chapter covered in feels

By the time Link reached Kakariko village it was already midnight. Link, however couldn’t wait until morning, he would’ve exploded if he had to.

 

Link gets off of Epona and sprints up the stairs to Impa’s house and opens both doors wide open.

 

“Impa! I remember now!”

 

Impa nearly jumps out of her skin when she hears the shouting coming from the hylian boy. She rubs her eyes and tries to give him a neutral expression, along there was irritation showing brightly in her eyes.

 

“Link, may I ask why in Hylia’s name you had to wake an old woman up in the middle of the night.”

 

Link walks up to her and lets the doors close by themselves.

 

“Impa I remember…I remember being at the east gate by Mount Lanayru when the Calamity hit…I remember the Champions ready to go fight it and the princess, and the goron…the goron, I don’t exactly remember his name, but he had so much faith in me back then. He believed in me to take Ganon down and I…” he bites his bottom lip as he tries to regain his composure. “I failed them, I failed them all…”

 

“Now do you see why I couldn’t entrust you with this mission until you have some sort of memory of the past?”

 

Link nods. “It was one thing to hear the spirit of the late king tell me…but it was just a story to me…but seeing their courageous faces I-“

 

“Link, you do not have to say anymore. I can see you are still shaken up at this revelation,” Impa lowers her head and closes her eyes. “Unfortunately, there is still so much left for you to remember. I wish for you to try to regain as much of your memory as possible I know this will be a painful process, but it will make you stronger.”

 

Link nods.

 

“Now I can finally entrust you with the last words the princess told me. She told me that you must go and free the Divine Beast from Ganon’s control. You will have to free four of them - Ruta, Rudania, Medoh, and Naboris. Along with that youmust find the Master Sword. Hundred years ago this was once your weapon. The princess has left it in the lost woods to let it recover while waiting for its master and to prevent anyone else from taking it. Also,”

 

Impa pauses and gingerly stands up, heading towards a drawer. She takes something out that is wrapped in brown linen before she closes the drawer. She walks back and stands in front of him.

 

“I hope that wearing this will give you strength.”

 

She unfolds the linen and reveals a sky blue tunic. The white stitching around the collar making the design of a sword.

 

“This…this was your tunic 100 years ago. It symbolized your title as a Champion,” Impa hands him the tunic carefully. “Please wear this with pride.”

 

Link looks down at this tunic and is immediately filled with feelings of relief. For some reason it engulfed him in the feelings of joy, similar joy to what people get when seeing an old friend for the first time in years. It was a similar feeling he got when he found and tamed Epona - actually it was more like she simply walked up to him. Even though he was simply holding it, it just felt so right.

 

He looks up at Impa and tightens his grip on the tunic, his blue eyes blazing with confidence and courage. “I accept this task and will wear this tunic with honor.”

 

Impa smiles and bows her head.

 

“Welcome back, Champion.”

 

***

 

_“Link! I saw the ceremony today! You looked amazing!”_

 

_Link looks up and see Thea run up the steps of the castle garden’s gazebo to greet him. She beams brightly at him, but all he does is silently look at her with a neutral expression on his face. Thea tries to brush this off and keep the conversation from falling so soon._

 

_“I also heard that your ceremony to become the princess’s appointed knight is tomorrow.”_

 

_Link simply nods and walk past her. Thea turns around to see him walking away. She feels her heart ache and runs in front of him._

 

_“Link, is something wrong?”_

 

_He shakes his head no. He puts his hand on her shoulder and pushes her aside so he can keep walking. Thea feels anger and hurt boil up inside her. This wasn’t the first time; he’s been avoiding her all week. In fact, he's been avoiding her all month. Ever since he found and pulled out the Master Sword he’s been aloof towards her. To make matters worse, he was named a Champion today, which means he can barely look at her now apparently. She was confused, frustrated, and upset over his behavior, and tonight was the last straw. She reaches over and grabs onto his arm tightly to stop him from getting away from her._

 

_“Why have you been avoiding me?”_

 

_Still he remains silent. That very silence causes all of Thea’s pent up emotions to spill out._

 

_“You know what? Ever since you found that stupid sword you’ve stopped talking to me! I originally thought it was just that you were shocked about having it- but it’s been a month now. Does the sword hate me or something?! And now you’ve become a Champion. I came to congratulate you and yet you still are trying to avoid me even when I’m right in front of your face!”_

 

_Thea lets go of his arm and covers her face, feeling the hot tears forming in her eyes and her voice grow unsteady._

 

_“Can I not be your friend now that you’re a Champion? Can I not be your friend now that the legendary blade chose you?”_

 

_She sniffles as the tears finally fall into her hands._

 

_“Am I not good enough for you now?”_

 

_She crumbled. She began to cry in front of Link of all people. It’s been years since she cried in front of him. The last time she cried in front of him was because she was talking to him about her mom dying when she was five._

 

_But that was years ago. She was a kid back then, now she’s practically an adult. She should be stronger than this by now. She should’ve just accepted years ago that they couldn’t be friends forever due to his duties towards the kingdom. The shame, frustration, and embarrassment of the whole situation made her cry more._

 

_Everything was silent except for her cries that were echoing in the garden. It felt like forever before she heard the shuffling of his boots. Before she knew it she felt strong arms wrap around her tightly. A hand reaches up and presses the back of her head against their chest._

 

_“I’m sorry,” Link spoke in almost a whisper._

 

_Those were the first words she heard him say to her in a month, and with that she grips on to his tunic and begins to cry into his chest._

 

_He simply held her and rubbed her back gently as she cried. Every so often he would make a ‘shh’ sound to try to calm her._

 

_Minutes passed, and the moon shined brightly on his face before Link placed his chin on top of her head._

 

_“Ever since I got the Master Sword, people keep talking about how I’m the chosen one and the hero. Not only that but now I’m a Champion. So many eyes are upon me Thea…I just felt it was right to silently bear any burden and be the rock for everyone. I didn’t want to bother anyone with my problems. I’m suppose to be a hero who can take care of them myself. And I just….” He pauses to pull her closer. “I didn’t want you to get caught up in all this…but instead of protecting you I only hurt you….I’m sorry”_

 

_There was a long pause before Thea spoke._

 

_“I forgive you,” she pulls back in order to see his face, however, his arms are still around her and her hands are on his chest._

 

_“But you have to promise me this.”_

 

_Link nods._

 

_“If the weight on your shoulders becomes too much, you -must- come to me. I know I don’t have powers or a special title of any kind, but the least I can do is ease the burden by carrying some of it for you.”_

 

_“Thea I can’t-“_

 

_“Yes you can. If you can take out a bokoblin camp without suffering from any injuries then you can talk to me to prevent you from having a mental breakdown.”_

 

_“I-“ Link sighs as he caves in “Fine.”_

 

_“Good,” Thea pulls away completely now and she is free from his grasp. “Now you have to get some rest. The ceremony is tomorrow morning if I’m not mistaken.”_

 

_“Alright then,” He starts walking away from her._

 

_“Goodnight Link.”_

 

_Link stops walking and turns around to face her. He gives her a cheeky smile._

 

_“By night do you mean a like metal knight or a starry night?”_

 

_Thea’s clenches her fist._

 

_“You know damn well what I mean!”_

 

_Link laughs as he turns away and walks out of her sight. Thea sighs and puts a hand against her heart, which is going at 100 beats per second and is ready to burst out of her chest. She was glad she finally was able to see Link lighten up after so long, but that smile was intoxicating. Her eyebrows furrow as she bites her bottom lip._

 

_“Damn it Thea,” she whispers to herself. “You don’t have time for this.”_

 

***

 

The ear-piercing crow from a cucco causes (y/n) to fall out of bed and snap out of her dream. She sits up groaning and rubbing the back of her head. The image of the boy’s smile still fresh in her mind. She was so frustrated. This boy looks just like the traveler. Along with that, both of their names are Link. But why was he at the castle? The castle is in ruins. Usually she could push it off as just a dream, but this felt more than a dream, almost like it was a part of her character. Something from her past.

 

But how? She was found abandoned on the side of the road and would’ve been killed by bokoblins if it wasn’t for Brigo finding her and taking her to the Dueling Peaks Stable. She’s lived at the stables all her life how could she be anywhere else except for here?

 

His smile flashes through her mind again and in a fit of rage she chucks her pillow against the wall. It smacks against the wall loudly and slides to the ground.

 

“Just who the fuck are you?!”

 

“(Y/n)? Are you talking to yourself again?” She heard Rensa speak from the other side of her door.

 

She freezes and feels her stomach drop at the fact that someone heard her.

 

“N-No no I was talking to the cucco.”

 

“Alright well now’s not the time to pick a fight with it, you gotta feed the goats.”

 

“Right,I’m on it.”

 

She gets up and starts to get ready for work, hoping that her everyday routine will distract her from her confusing dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for reading and I will update soon.


	6. Tangles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been a minute since I last updated so this chapter might be a bit rough on the edges. I tried to make up the absence by giving you shirtless Link.

It was dawn when Link woke up and rose from his bed. He thought about what happened last night as he stares absently at the wall. After Impa told him where all the Divine Beasts were he dashed out of the village on Epona desperate to head out towards Zora’s Domain as soon as possible. By the time Epona made it to the bridge fatigue unfortunately took a toll on her and Link had no choice but to rest at the stables for the night.

 

It was honestly quite funny watching the man behind the counter struggle to stay awake while assigning a bed for Link to sleep in. He did come in at around 1:00 am after all.

 

He gets up out of his bed and slips on his boots. He just wanted to get some fresh air is all so he didn’t bother to fix his hair or put on a shirt.

 

He walks out of the inn and hears a splash underneath. He looks down at the puddle to see a young man stare back at him, covered in scars from his past. He grimace at the most prominent of the scars which went across his chest. Sure it didn’t look that bad, but it only reminds him about how he failed all those years ago. If only he had been stronger the maybe...

 

“What are you doing here?”

 

He snaps up and turns to the voice and is met with a pair of (e/c) eyes and the face of a familiar woman. (Y/n) eyes were narrow in a form of annoyance, and gripping tightly onto her broom stick. Despite all that she has a pink blush spread across her cheeks. It was kinda cute in a way to see her angry yet flustered all at once.

 

“Is it wrong for me to rest here for the night?”

 

“No,” she looks away as her face softens and the blush darkens. But you should put a shirt on.”

 

He chuckles and goes over to sit on a bench by the fire. She decides to give in and sets the broom to the side and sit besides him.

 

“How did you get all these scars?”

 

She immediately regretted asking that as he stiffens up but there’s no turning back now.

 

“I uh...I don’t really remember...I got them a long time ago...”

 

“Oh? Shame, I was expecting some sort of daring tale about how you wrestled a bear or something,” she chuckles, “travelers always come around here and show off their scars and their tales, but if anything they just look like cat scratches, nothing compared to a huge scarring across the chest.”

 

(Y/n) looks over at him see see him looking down; his hands clamped together tightly as his forearms rest on his semi spread apart thighs. She frowns as she notices his face harden and he bites his bottom lip.

 

“Sorry, I got carried away.”

 

“It’s fine.”

 

She quickly tries to change the topic.

 

“Where are you from?”

 

He shrugs his shoulders.She feels herself taken aback at this answer. Usually when she ask a traveler that question they go off on a long story about their past and what made them decide to embark on their journey. Whether it was for riches, glory, or love.

 

But this guy didn’t do any of that. In fact, it doesn’t even seem like he knows anything.

 

“How do you not know where you’re from? Do you have amnesia or something?”

 

“I guess.”

 

How in Hylia's name can this guy stay so casual about it all?

 

“Do you remember anything at all?”

 

“Kind of...but it’s so little that it’s hard to explain. All I know is that I failed...and I need to fix that.”

 

He looks down and his muscles tighten. (Y/n) places a hand on his shoulder.

 

“Don’t get so worked up over it. Everyone makes mistakes. Besides, it’s not like your failure caused the destruction of Hyrule-“

 

She bit her tongue the second the words came out of her mouth. For some reason she felt like that was the absolute worst thing to say to him.

 

“I uh-“

 

Her relaxed demeanor was starting to fade and she began cursing over and over again in her head. She had to make this conversation take an one eighty. Goddesses knows she'll make the twins mad if she made a customer unhappy.

 

“How about I fix your hair? If you keep unchecked like this it’s going to become a rat’s nest”

 

“No I’m fine- hey!”

 

(Y/n) with one swift move took the tie out of his hair and his golden locks fell down to his shoulders.

 

“Come on, turn around so I can brush it.”

 

“This is really not necessary.”

 

“Yes it is. Now turn around.”

 

Link sighs and turns his back towards her. (Y/n) grabs a hairbrush and begins to brush his hair. Instantly she hits a knot in his hair and he yelps as she tries to get it out.

 

“I’m sorry this one seems pretty bad. Goddesses when was the last time you brushed it?”

 

“Uh...100 years?”

 

She laughs. “I’m sure it wasn’t that long. Probably more than a week based on its condition.”

 

She finally gets the knot out and continues brushing. To be honest she grew quite envious at how soft his hair is compared to hers, and she probably let her hand linger in it for a bit longer than normal.

 

“Alright you’re done,” she gives him back his hair tie.

 

“Thanks,” he goes and puts his hair back up in the ponytail. “I guess since you already fixed my hair I should probably get going.”

 

“Where to?”

 

“Zora’s Domain.”

 

“That’s quite far away. Are you sure you want to go that far?”

 

“I have to.”

 

“Ok, just make sure you don’t forget about us.”

 

“I won’t.” Link got up and headed over to where his stuff was inside and (y/n) went ahead and started to attend to the goats.

 

Link threw on a cream colored shirt with orange and green stitching along the collar line. He then threw on his Champion’s tunic he received from Impa, ready to take on his fated task once more. He finished off his outfit with orange and green cloth wraps around his arms and a leather bracer for his right arm.

 

He walks outside and once again takes in the fresh air with ease before packing up all his belonging for Epona to carry.

 

(Y/n) looks over from the goat’s pen only to feel herself become paralyzed in place. The once sky blue tunic she only hoped to see in her dream was right in front of her.

 

She felt like she was going to vomit and she stumbles to find her footing as visions blur her mind.

 

Millions of images race through her mind of the man in her dreams accompanied with that exact tunic. Most of them were faces of him smiling but one in particular burns through her mind and makes her feel like someone just knocked the wind out of her.

 

In her mind she sees his face covered in dirt, the tunic bloody and dirty with a few tears, and his hair a mess despite still being up in a ponytail. Tears were streaming down his face and his eyes were all red and puffy. A pure look of anguish was painted all over his face.

 

“Don’t leave me!”

 

She lets out a scream and feels herself falling. She is caught by a pair of strong arms.

 

“Are you okay,” the hylian man ask her with a voice filled with concern.

 

But she couldn’t say anything. All she could do was watch as the world faded around her with his golden hair as the last thing she sees.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again thank you so much for reading! My story reached over 600 hits and I cannot thank you enough for that.
> 
> I will try to update soon but until then feel free to comment your thoughts.
> 
> Thank you and happy St. Patrick's day!


	7. My Little Girl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Was in the writing mood today and decided to post one last chapter before I turn in for the night.
> 
> I decided to do something different for this chapter and decided to focus a lot on the botw npc Tasseren (one of the twins at Dueling Peaks Stable in the game, he's the guy behind the counter). As you can see I'm trying to write the npcs in detail as well because I feel like some of them deserve some love.
> 
> Also in this story the stable is -way- bigger than in game. It actually has rooms instead of just beds lying in the common area along with a hallway of rooms that the employees stay in.
> 
> Anyways thanks for understanding and kudos for reading this note until the end.
> 
> Without further to do let's go

The storm wouldn’t cease to exist and instead blew harder and poured showers of water onto the land of Hyrule. Travelers and merchants ran to the stables as soon as they could, begging for shelter. Tasseren and Rensa were hard at work since morning providing people blankets to stay warm and hot drinks to prevent them from catching a cold. Tasseren was so busy with people that he didn’t have time to figure out who’s staying, who’s not staying the night, which bed they should get, and how much it will cost them. All of that flew over his head. He was so busy he didn’t even notice his friend running towards the stables while sheltering something in his arms from the rain.

 

“Tasseren. Tasseren! TASS!”

 

“What what?! Can’t you see I’m busy Rensa?!”

 

“Isn’t that Brigo?” Rensa points in the direction of the running man and Tasseren instantly recognizes his friend.

 

“Stay here,” Tasseren hands Rensa the remaining blankets he had in his arms and runs out into the storm to meet with his friend.

 

“Brigo? What are you doing here? I thought you were keeping patrol at Proxim Bridge - wait,” he steps forward and listens closer. Through the heavy rain he hears crying through all the blankets in Brigo’s arm.

 

“Is that…a baby?”

 

He slowly nods and moves some of the fabric away to reveal an infant’s face all scrunched up and crying.

 

“You idiot, how long has it been crying for?! Oh whatever come on, we have to get it inside.” Tassernen quickly takes the baby in his arms and hurries to the stables with Brigo. Quickly he takes off the soaked blankets so the baby could be rewrapped into new ones. He holds it in his arms and gets it to calm down.

 

“Wow Tass, I never thought you were family-oriented.”

 

“Where did you find it Brigo?”

 

“It was in the forest by the bridge. I woke up at dawn and heard crying, and when I went to investigate it was in the hollow part of a tree abandoned. I checked for any sort of note or anything to figure out it’s origin, but nothing.”

 

“That’s weird… There was no one else with you?”

 

“No one.”

 

“Tsk, they must’ve left it in the middle of the night while you were asleep.”

 

Tass notices Brigo looking down in guilt and is quick to put his hand on his dear friend’s shoulder. He squeezes it in reassurance.

 

“Don’t feel bad for not waking up during the night or anything to stop the person. What matters is that you saved it.”

 

“Thank you Tass.”

 

“Now come on, you must be starving. You feeling stew tonight?”

 

***  
  


“So, it’s a girl eh?”

 

Tass as he watches Brigo head back to Proxim Bridge.

 

“How do you know that?”

 

Tass smacked his brother on the back of his head.

 

“I looked dumbass.”

 

“Ow ow ow! Okay okay! You didn’t have to smack me or anything,” Rensa rubs where he got hit to ease the pain. “You got a name for her?”

 

“I was thinking about naming her (y/n).”

 

“(Y/n)? How did you come up with -that- name?”

 

Tass looks up at the sky in remembrance “Mom told me once she loved that name.”

 

Rensa’s face softens and looks up at the sky with his brother. “Yeah, now that I think about it, it does sound like something she would like.”

 

They both look up at the sky together in quiet agreement over the name. Rensa was the first to break the silence by hitting Tass on the arm with the back of his hand.

 

“I bet mom never thought you would be the first out of the two of us to become a father.”

 

“I- What? Since when did -I- become the father figure?”

 

“I mean you did take care of her all of last night. Besides, I think we can all agree I fit the crazy uncle role better than you do.”

 

“Why I oughta- you know what fine. I will -gladly- take the role of her adopted father.”

 

Rensa smirks. “Don’t act like you’re not going to love it.”

 

***

 

Tass looks up from the counter and watches as (y/n) sweeps up the pens and feed the goats. It was almost like it was yesterday since that night.

 

He drifted into his memories again and felt the excitement once again he felt when hearing her first words. That day he was on cloud nine and practically told anyone who would lend him an ear about how his baby girl said her first words. He was also that way when she learned horseback riding and archery.

 

It wasn’t like her childhood was always safe sailing however. He still remembers when she was about five years old and waking up screaming because of her nightmares. He would run to her and hold her close at night when this happened and tried to remind her that none of it was real. None of the buildings were falling on her, and no fire was going to hurt them. It shattered his heart to see her so upset over it, sometimes after the nightmares she wouldn’t even dare go near fire in real life and he would have to remind her that fire can be used for good and it’s not always destructive.

 

He could never forget how relieved he was to see her eventually grow out of those nightmares. Seeing her finally get a good night’s rest was one of the greatest moments of his life.

 

After all those years, she became a beautiful young woman filled with compassion and determination, and he couldn’t be anymore proud. Sure Tass got some nephews after Rensa found a woman, but in his mind, they could never compare to (y/n), because she would always be his little girl.

 

He was pulled back into the present by a cry coming from a young hylian sitting beside his adopted daughter.

 

“Oh my Hylia, how did you get this many knots in your hair?”

 

“Please this isn’t necessary-ow! Please no more!”

 

“Hold still! It wouldn’t hurt that much if you do so.”

 

Tass smiles and lets out a soft chuckle over the whole ordeal. He kept watching the situation to entertain himself. She was finally done torturing the guy and they both stood up to exchange a few words, and that’s when he saw it. It was quick, it was tiny, but goddesses was it there. That very moment they were talking he saw a sliver of love in her (e/c) eyes.

 

He almost choked at this revelation. Never in his mind did it come across to him that eventually his baby girl would find someone to love.

 

But there was no mistaking that it was love. He couldn’t even mistake it as platonic love, no, this was love, one that can transcend time.

 

But what if this boy breaks her heart? No, he wouldn’t let that happen. He REFUSES to let that happen.

 

Before he could start his plot to figure out if Link was a douchebag or not he hears a scream and instantly knows it’s (y/n)’s scream. He quickly dashes from the counter to where she was to see the man was holding her in his arms and prevented her from hitting the ground.

 

“What happened?”

 

“I-I don’t know, she just passed out.”

 

“Here I’ll take her to her room.”

 

Link stood up with her still in his arms. Tass reaches out as a gesture that he can carry her, but Link shakes his head.

 

“Don’t worry I got it.”

 

“You sure?”

 

Link nods.

 

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

 

Link looks back at Epona and all his packed up luggage in thought before turning back.

 

“No, it can wait. I want to make sure she’s okay.”

 

“Alright well her room is down that hallway to your left.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

Link walks pass Tass. Tass signs in relief that she didn’t get injured; he’s going to thank the boy later, and also celebrate the fact that his adopted daughter isn’t crushing on a total jerk.

 

But there was one fear still nagging him at the back of his head, and it kept growing. What if, just what if, her nightmares about falling buildings and flames comes back to haunt her? And if so, was this incident going to trigger them?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading! I hope you are enjoying this story so far and feel free to comment your thoughts.


	8. The Garden

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kid you not I had to rewrite this chapter like five times cause I kept changing my mind on how I wanted to execute this. Hopefully this chapter doesn't confuse you guys or anything.

(Y/n) forces her eyelids open despite the fact that they felt heavy from fatigue. She looked around and it was as if she didn’t open her eyes at all. It was pitch black. Pure darkness filled the never ending void. She stands up and looks down only to see more darkness. It was a weird feeling of falling yet floating, and that made her sick. Where ever she was it was not reality. It couldn’t be reality. The void began to drive (y/n) crazy and she begins to touch her hands, arms, hips, legs, even her (h/c) hair, afraid that she has been sucked into the void and ceased to exist. Suddenly she sees from the corner of her eye a bright, blinding, golden light that breaks through the darkness. (Y/n) shields her (e/c) eyesfrom the brightness when it began to fully awaken. After the light calms down into a softer glow, she lowers her hands from her eyes. She stares at the gentle light that acted as a flame in fascination, the light captivating her whole mind.

 

(Y/n)’s feet begin to move on their own. She didn’t even know why she was moving towards it, it could explode and kill her for all she knows, but for some reason she felt like it’s here to help her. Whether it was to guide her or simply make her less afraid.

 

The closer she went to it the duller the light got and once again she began to feel the fear once again. Before she knew it, she was sprinting towards the last fragments of the light.

 

“Please don’t go, please don’t go,” she heard herself say over and over again.

 

She finally reached the light, but it turned out to be nothing more than a shiny golden doorknob that seemed to be connected to no door what so ever. It was strange to see the doorknob shimmer in total darkness and no matter how she turned her head around it she could not see her reflection at all. (Y/n) reaches her right hand for the doorknob despite the fact that it was shaking violently. She had to pull back her hand and hold it against her chest due to the shaking. She felt her heart beating rapidly. She tried to take a few deep breaths to calm herself. As she calmed down she heard beating in her ears. Were there...drums nearby? No...it was a heartbeat and it was beating in perfect rhythm with hers. Someone else was with her, perhaps-

 

“Open the door.”

 

(Y/n) gasped out loud in fear and practically jumped out her skin at the sound of the faint voice. The voice sounded like it came from a woman, and it was urgent.

 

“Please open the door.”

 

She looks back at the doorknob, now shimmering and turning a bright hue of blue. She swallow hard and grabbed onto the doorknob. Immediately she felt the doorknob sizzle under her grasp and burn her palm. She screams in pain but continues to turn it. With all her strength she pushes the knob forward and light engulfed the place.

 

 

 

When the light faded away she was surrounded by vibrant vegetation and flowers of all colors and species. The sky was a pure blue with no cloud present. Butterflies with electric green wings fluttered all around the area. There’s a pond nearby filled with hot footed frogs jumping from one lily pad to the next. Metal fences surrounded the area but were barely visible with all the plants growing up the fence.

 

(Y/n) walk over to the pond and gasp out loud at her reflection. Her humble stable outfit she grew so accustomed to was do longer was there and was instead replaced with a cream colored, off the shoulder, a line tea dress. Her (h/l) (h/c) hair was decorated with flowers in shades of blue, pink and yellow. She took some of the fabric and felt it in between her fingers. It was cool to the touch and silky almost as if water was in-between her fingers. It was exquisite and nothing she could have ever owned - mostly because she would probably ruin in within 15 seconds of having it.

 

It was really…paradise.

 

She let go of the dress and noticed the conditions of her hands. They would red and badly scarred. The sight was awful compared to everything else surrounding her and she found herself wondering if finding this piece of heaven was worth the fourth degree burns. A flash of purple is seen from the corner of her eyes and distracts her from her despairs; she turns to find the source of the color. When her eyes finally meet the source it was as if she was seeing a goddess right there right then.

 

From across the pond there was figure by a plethora of bushes. The figure was a silhouette of a woman with long hair that flowed effortlessly in the gentle breeze. The silhouette hinted at dress so long that it could easily cover up her feet and she glowed a translucent lavender color. (Y/n) had to blink multiple times to truly capture the whole sight, she tries to speak but her throat suddenly feels dry and it comes out as a squeak.

 

“W-Were you the one who called me?”

 

The figure continued to have her backed turned away from (y/n). (Y/n) swallowed hard as she started to move towards her, careful not to trip over her own feet.

 

“Were you the one who spoke to me?”

 

The person finally takes notice of her and turns to face her. Once again the figure's beauty astonishes (y/n).

 

The figure’s facial features were soft and elegant. What really stood out, however, were the eyes. The eyelids were outlined in a golden yellow to separate them from the rest of the other features. The sclera, iris, and pupil, however, were still that same lavender color like the rest of her body with a dark violent ring separating the iris from the sclera. (Y/n) got so hypnotized by the eyes that she didn’t even notice that the figure approached her and took a hold of her hands.

 

“You finally heard me,” the figure’s voice was faint and tender.

 

“I-what? Oh- Oh right yeah I guess I heard you..?”

 

The figure’s hand glowed yellow as she began to heal (y/n)’s hands.

 

“For years I have called for you.”

 

“Who are you?”

 

“I cannot say just yet.”

 

“Why not?”

 

“I have already caused too much strain to your body.”

 

“Were you…were you the reason why I passed out?”

 

“Perhaps.”

 

“Where am I?”

 

“Must you ask so many questions?”

 

“Yes! It’s not everyday someone just pops into paradise and gets healed by a practical goddess!”

 

The woman giggles and lets go of (y/n)’s hands which are now fully healed. “You should be looking at yourself if you see me as a goddess.”

 

“I…What?”

 

“You should be going. Like I said before revealing any more to you would not benefit your physical form in real life. It’s already a miracle you got in here.”

 

“You can’t just leave me hanging like this.”

 

“Yes I can.”

 

The woman led her to a now open gate - (y/n) could’ve swore there wasn’t a gate there before - and gave her a gentle push out. (Y/n) looked one last time at the woman’s eyes before falling into darkness.

 

***

 

(Y/n) jolts out of bed with little breath and a massive headache. She groans in pain as she reaches up and rubs her head. She takes the time to catch her breath and calm down her brain. When she finally gains her composure, she opens her eyes and sees that she is now in her room with the sky pitch black.

 

“How long was I out,” she thought in her head. “It must’ve been at least 12 hours or more since it’s night outside.”

 

She keeps looking around to let her eyes adjust to the night. She was staring at a lumpy object when her eyes finished adjusting and the lumpy object sculpted more into a figure of a man sitting hunched over against the wall and asleep beside her bed. Not just any man…it was Link.

 

“How..how long has he been there,” she thinks as she slowly gets out of her bed. “Don’t tell me he was here since this morning because of me…”

 

Guilt began to crept up into the pits of her stomach and she felt it necessary to at least give the poor man a blanket. She grabs the spare blanket from the end of her bed and kneels beside him. She gently wraps it around his shoulders. She pulled back after finishing but didn’t feel like getting up quite yet. She remained sitting beside him and brought her knees to her chest and she wrapped her arms around them. She looked up at the ceiling and tried to remember everything she went through right before she woke up. It all started off with that tunic that he was wearing and then there were visions, then the garden, and the woman-

 

She feels something hit against her shoulder. She turns her head to see his head has fallen against her shoulder. She feel her muscles relax and heart soften. She moved her head so it was resting against his, whether it was her will to or not. As she felt drowsiness take over she could’ve swore she heard the woman’s voice speak right before she feel asleep.

 

 

 _I missed you so much…Link_.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear I'm not on acid, I'm just an insomniac who's posting a chapter at 4 am.


	9. Our Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter in a nutshell:
> 
> "Hey there demons, it's me, ya boy"

 

Link slowly opens his eyes and groans. He doesn’t quite remember when exactly he fell asleep, but it must’ve been a long time ago.He takes the time to look around the room at the simple dresser across the room along with the closet right next to it. He eyes drift off to where (y/n)’s bed was and notices it empty.

 

“(Y/n)!”

 

He quickly jumps up to his feet and looks around with worry filling his stomach. The door knob turns and the female who he just called out for appears.

 

“Oh! You’re finally awake.”

 

“Wh-When did you-“

 

“Don’t worry about it, I’m okay now.”

 

“Are you sure?”

 

She nods. “Come on you gotta get going. You don’t want to delay any longer, Zora’s Domain is quite far away from here.”

 

Link nods and walks past, not before realizing that she isn’t in her normal work outfit that the stable workers usually wear. Instead she is wearing a white tunic with black tights along with a magenta colored knitted sweater.

 

“Day off?”

 

“Huh? Oh,” She blushes at him recognizing the change of attire. “Yeah, Tass said I should take today off after what happened yesterday.”

 

“Yeah you were out for quite a while,” Link rubs the back of his neck and looks away from her; his cheeks grow a rosy color. “To be honest I was kinda worried there.”

 

“Aw you don’t have to worry about me. It’s not like I’m going to die or anything.”

 

_“It’s not like I’m going to die.”_

 

Link eyes widen and body becomes stiff at the voice in his head saying similar words to what (y/n) said. His stomach begins to twist uncomfortably at the connection for some reason. He didn’t have time to ponder and investigate more on his emotions however before she punched him in the arm to get his attention.

 

“Hey lighten up, it’s a joke silly. Now let me go get Epona for you.” Before he can say anything she turns around to face away from him and walks to where the horses are. He rubs his sore arm gently as he watches her walk away. He watches and can’t help but smile.

 

***

 

“Okay remember Zora’s Domain is north of here in the Lanayru region, just be careful when going through Hyrule fields, I’ve heard from other travelers that they’ve seen a few guardians lurking around there.”

 

“Thanks Tass, I’ll be sure to be careful.” Link says as he finishes attaching his dark navy hood around his neck. Once he finished, he put the hood up to cover up his small ponytail and pointy ears.

 

(Y/n) lowers her head to collect her thoughts before she approaches Link as he climbs onto Epona.

 

“Link?”

 

Link’s ears perk up at the sound of his name and turns to look at the person who called.

 

“Yes?”

 

“I well...it’s not much...but I’ve heard that the Domain has gotten quite cold and rainy lately so I,” she clears her throat as a lumps forms in it. Why was she getting so nervous? “I took the liberty of making some elixirs for you, you know, to warm you up.”

 

She anxiously holds the bottles up filled with the orange-red substance in front of her to offer to him. She looked down, afraid he would reject her offer. Link smiles and leans down a bit since he’s on Epona to take a hold of the bottles; even though he could make these himself he really did appreciate the offer. “Thank you, (y/n)”

 

She looks up as she feels his fingers against her hands and smiles in relief that he accepted her offer. Their fingers lingered against each other for a while, and it seemed like neither of them were going to pull back anytime soon. (Y/n)’s (e/c) eyes stare into his cerulean eyes which were slightly darker than usual due to the shadows the hood casted over them. She feels her heart beat become…faster. Was it normal to have a heart race while looking into someone’s eyes? The more they stood looking at each other the more electrifying the contact felt to her. Link could feel it too, the connection. He couldn’t quite put it into words it felt…familiar. Like something like this happened before. Like he knew her for longer than just the few weeks since waking up. Was it because of the way her eyes caught the setting sun and shimmered? Was it the look of pure happiness on her face? But he’s seen travelers with similar color eyes as hers and similar looks of joy, so why was she different? Why does he get this feeling around her but not when he met Impa for the first time despite the fact that they once new each other before the Calamity. Why, just…why?

 

Epona let out a neigh impatiently and begins to gallop off on her own without her master saying it was okay for her to move. Link gasp out loud at the sudden movement but is able to hold on to the bottles as (y/n) lets go of them.

 

“Sorry! I guess Epona couldn’t wait any longer.”

 

“That’s okay, stay safe Link!”

 

“You too, (y/n)!”

 

She continued to stare out into the distance even after he was long gone with his voice ringing in her head. She puts a hand on her heart and tries to steady the beating. Sure she’s been called by her name multiple times before by other people, and sure she’s seen other attractive people hang around the stables, but none of them made her melt at the sight of just their eyes. None of them ever made her feel pure euphoria at the sound of their voice saying her name. Even then, she’s known him for about three weeks, and while yes she couldn’t lie even back then about him being attractive, he didn’t make her all giddy like this back then, this feeling was recent. It happened so quickly. What triggered it?

 

“The woman,” she breathed out loud. She looks up at the sky and comes to a conclusion: tonight she was going to figure out how to get back to that place. She must see this woman again. She didn’t care how far she has to go, she needs answers.

 

***

 

(Y/N) waited until everyone was asleep before she went to her room to begin planning her re-entry into the ‘garden’. Last time, it was the tunic that triggered it all, so maybe, if she thinks about it, she can get back there. Seems easy right?

 

Well an hour has past and she is still sitting straight in her bed with her eyes close and nothing has clicked in. She opens one eye to check the clock and groans at the fact that is now one in the morning. She closes her eyes again and takes in a deep breath in before exhaling it out.

 

She tries to clear her mind and only think about the dreams she’s been having recently. A lot of them however were from the eyes of a child, and nothing close to what triggered her before, and what did trigger her were multiple second long visions of him, nothing she could really work with.

 

She sighs in frustration as she starts over. She tries this time to think about the events right up to when she saw the doorknob. The doorknob turned blue before she turned it. It was blue just like…his eyes. The tunic was also blue…just like his eyes.

 

His eyes, they were the key. How could she be so blind to not see that before?

 

With the realization finally clicking in, she begins to think of his eyes. The way they shined even in the night. The way they soften around Epona. The way they look at her with a past still locked up from everyone including himself. That’s all it took for her head to suddenly ache like someone hit it with a hammer. Her hands begin to burn fiercely and she has to bite her bottom lip to prevent herself from waking everyone up with her cries. Her breathing quickens and she struggles to calm it down. It wasn’t long before she felt her conscious slip away.

 

***  
 

She opens her eyes and once again sees before her the familiar garden from last night. She beams brightly at the fact her plan worked. Now all she has to do is find that mysterious woman. Sure enough she sees her from across the pond.

 

“Hey!”

 

The woman turns and looks at her. (Y/n) uses the small rocks in the pond to jump across to close the gap between them.

 

“You’ve come back.”

 

“Yes! Now will you tell me who you are?”

 

The woman looks down and her shimmering lavender color dims into a deeper violet color. “I do admire your determination. You knew the risks of coming back here and yet here you are.” The woman goes and sits down on a bench made of marble by the pond. “Sit down.”

 

(Y/n) nods and sits besides her.

 

“Where am I?”

 

“You are inside your soul. You may call this the Spirit Plane. This is the only place where I reside.”

 

“And who are you?”

 

The woman doesn’t speak and instead chooses to look at the butterflies to avoid the question. Nature sounds are the only things filling the silence before she speaks.

 

“Tell me (y/n)…what do you think happens to us when we die?”

 

(Y/n) eyes widen at the question. Why couldn’t she just give her her name? Why does she have to ask a philosophical question?

 

“Well…”(y/n) looks down in thought, “Tass told me while growing up that if we leave the world with love in our heart, we will ascend to the heavens and live with the goddesses. Some souls however remain here as spirits due to unfinished business. Some are good, some are bad; their nature as a spirit depends on what exactly that unfinished business is.”

 

The woman nods letting her know that she is listening, her ghostly figure changing color again from violet to a deep blue. “Did he ever tell you about the curse?”

 

“The curse…?” (Y/n) looks up at the woman in bewilderment. The woman looks away and instead focuses on the birds flying nearby.

 

“Years ago, before the establishment of Hyrule, a young hero reign victorious against his battle with the demon king. The evil entity, however, was bitter and cursed both their souls to forever be reborn to fight each other time and time again. In other words,” the woman looks down and her color changes into a blue so dark it’s practically black, “the demon made sure the hero’s soul could never see the heavens,” she takes in a breath and closes her eyes; her color changes back to its normal lavender as she exhales. “Hylia, one of the goddesses, knew that the soul needed help for all of eternity. So she let other souls volunteer to reincarnate along with the hero so that way it could never truly be alone.”

 

“That’s…depressing. But at least he’s not alone.”

 

“True, but while the hero could have knowledge of his previous lives, the volunteered souls couldn’t. They would be reborn in a different physical form, with a different personality, and with no knowledge of their past life. They would only know about it once they return to the heavens and choose whether to go back or not. Sometimes, due to the lack of knowledge, they tread away from their initial goal and sometimes never even meet the hero in their life.”

 

“…how do you know all this?”

 

“Because (y/n), you are here because I chose to reincarnate. Those memories in your dreams and visions. Those aren’t fake, those are -my- memories.” The woman stands up them both up, holds onto (y/n)’s shoulders, and looks at (y/n) in the eye.

 

“I am Thea. Your past incarnation.”

 

(Y/n) stands there looking at the woman in shock before the contradiction kicks in.

 

“Wait, you just said reincarnated souls come back with different physical bodies, different personalities, and no knowledge of their previous lives. How does that-“ (y/n) stops mid sentence as fear crawls beneath her skin. “What did….what did you do?”

 

Thea lets go of her and looks away, sorrow pained all over her ghostly face. “I wanted my next incarnation to remember me despite their new life and personality. I them to remember -him-. I want them to know the reason why they are here, why they feel the things they feel towards him. And so I…” Thea turns her head away from (y/n) “I traded my place in heaven for that knowledge.”

 

(Y/n) felt her mouth go dry, “You mean you…and me…we can never go to heaven?”

 

Thea hesitantly nods.

 

“You gave away eternal happiness in the heavens for this?”

 

Thea remains silent prompting (y/n) to ask again.

 

“…why?”

 

“I fell in love with the hero…and I never wanted him to ever be alone.”

 

“But there are others who come back to help him.”

 

“They don’t remember their purpose so there is no guarantee they will help him. We, however, know our purpose and why we are here so we could never leave him.”

 

“I never knew about this.”

 

“Of course not, because he hasn’t shown up until now.”

 

Hasn’t shown up until now…this sounded too familiar. The pieces start to fall in place.

 

“Are you saying Link is the reincarnation of that hero? That amnesiac guy I just met?” (Y/n) felt herself immediately regret saying that, because she was afraid she was right.

 

“Yes!”

 

Oh shit...she was right.

 

(Y/n) loses feeling of her legs due to shock and starts to fall; Thea is quick to catch her and remains sitting on the ground holding her.

 

“I don’t understand. In the memories he looks the same as he does today.”

 

“It’s because of the Calamity. Link was one of the Champions during the rise of Calamity Ganon.”

 

“But that was a hundred years ago. And I thought all the Champions were killed by the Calamity.”

 

“He wasn’t. He was gravely wounded while protecting the princess, but the princess took him to the Shrine of Resurrection so he could come back and take back Hyrule from the Calamity.”

 

“How am I suppose to help him? I can’t just leave the stables; it’s all I ever known.”

 

“I’m not asking you to leave everything behind and fight alongside him. All he needs is for someone to comfort and love him while he regains his memories.” Thea holds (y/n) closer her figure changing the deep blue from before. “I know this is a lot to ask from you…I am so sorry I robbed you of everything.”

 

(Y/n) feels herself growing more dizzy and finding it more hard to focus.

 

“These feelings I’m starting to have for him…does this mean they’re not my feelings? They’re just yours?”

 

“Of course they are (y/n)!” Thea pulls back a little so she can look at (y/n) in the eyes. “We may be different people with different consciouses and different pasts, but we have the same soul. And that souls holds the love for him. They are your feelings as well as mine. Never -ever- think they are just mine.”

 

“What if I end up not loving him?”

 

“You will, trust me.”

 

Thea brushes a strand of (y/n)’s (h/c) hair out of her face and hums softly to her. (Y/n) feels herself losing sense of the world.

 

“I will see you again. Rest for now.”

 

***

 

(Y/n) opens her eyes and sees that she is back in her room. She groans as her head keeps pounding non stop. Perhaps it was a bit too much to try to go back there. She lays down on the bed and stares at the wall with the new information fresh in her mind.

 

“It was you all along…”

 

That’s all she was able to whisper out before she fell asleep, her body in dire need of the recharge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's okay if this still confuses you, I confused myself about ten times while writing this.
> 
> Anyways next chapter has been one I've waiting to write for SO LONG so yeah that's gonna be fun.


	10. Mother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait but here it is. This is a very Link heavy chapter so I hope that's your cup a tea.

 

The sound of hooves hitting the dirt road is the only comfort for Link during this long journey to Zora’s Domain. Link keeps looking at his Sheikah Slate every so often to make sure he is on the right track. Link watches as they get closer to the blinking yellow dot before Epona comes to a sudden halt.

 

“Epona, what is it girl?” Link reaches over and pets her mane gently to comfort her. He looks up to be welcomed with a worn out sign in front of crumbled houses.

 

“What is this place?” Link thinks to himself as he looks back at the Sheikah Slate to see if it has any info on the location, but there is none. Link looks back up at the sign and tries to read the faded letters.

 

“Lon…Lon…Lon Lon Ranch?” Link grows more curious and gently tugs on the reins to direct Epona more into the ruins.

 

Link looks around at the broken down walls that hinted at the size of the now fallen houses and what little remains of what looks to be a corral. Link hops off of Epona, pulls out his Sheikah Slate, and presses on the apple icon in the inventory section. He watches as the apple materializes into his hand from once ribbons of bright blue. He hands the apple to Epona who gladly accepts the gift.

 

“Stay here girl.” Link gives her one last pet before he continues on forward. He didn’t know exactly why this place intrigues him so much, maybe its because he’s looking for anything that can spark some sort of memory in his head. He climbs over the fence of the corral and walks around the perimeter, feeling the edge of the fence as he walks around. This place seems like something he should remember, but nothing is quite clicking. Maybe he should keep moving forward and come back here once he remembers other things - more important th-.

 

Epona loud cry awakes him from his thoughts just in time to dodge an arrow that was coming right at him. He watches the arrow fly past, inches away from cutting his cheek. He looks at the source of the attack and sees not one, but two bokoblins. On top of it all, they are both riding horseback.

 

“Fuck.” Was the last word he thought to himself before going into combat mode. He whistles for Epona to come over. Epona obeys her companion and comes running forward. Link quickly grabs on and hoist himself back onto the saddle, barely dodging the arrows being shot at him- and the number of arrows being shot at him is multiplying. Link signals Epona to run faster and circle around the bokoblins as he whips out his bow. He takes an arrow from his quiver and draws his bow, waiting for the right moment to strike.

 

“In between the eyes Link. Shoot in between the eyes.”

 

Link feels time slow down as he focus in. He exhales slowly and lets go of the string, the arrow flying forward. Time resumes back to normal in his point of view as the arrow hits the bokoblin perfectly in between his eyes and directly below its horn. It cries out in pain as it falls off the horse and exhales its last breath. Link smiles and does a small fist pump in celebration before grabbing another arrow from his quiver. He draws his bow and finishes the last one quickly. Epona stops running once the action is all over.

 

“I think that’s all of them.” Link says out loud to Epona as he comforts her. “You did great out there-“

 

He heard sounds of beeping, the spacing between each beep decreasing.

 

The little squabble between him and the bokoblins caught the attention of a guardian.

 

“Oh shit...”

 

Link clings onto the reins tightly as he smacks it down, signaling her to go. Epona dashes forwards and jumps over the fence. The laser blast goes off and Link watches as the beam of brilliant plasma barely hits them. Link curses at himself for not having any shields on him to deflect the beam - he’ll have to make a note to always have a shield in the future. Link looks at where they are now and notices that Epona led them to more ruins right next to the ranch. It must be town ruins, surely there should be some sort of thing he could use as a shield. Link swoops down and grabs onto the first thing he could substitute for a shield - a pot lid.

 

Link turns towards the guardian with the shield in hand. The guardian shoots another laser beam. With a flick of the wrist Link uses the pot lid to fling the attack back at the guardian. The beam hits it directly in the eye and he watches as it explodes in the distance.

 

“WOO HOO!” Link drops the pot lid in excitement with his hands stretched out in the air. Epona notices his relief and comes to a gentle halt in the middle of the village ruins.

 

“Oh my goddesses Epona did you see that!? Oh that was incredible I can’t believe it-“ Link’s celebration was cut short as his surroundings bring him back to the grim truth about Hyrule’s past. Link joy fades quickly as he hops down off of Epona and checks the Sheikah Slate. This time the slate signals that where he is now where Mabe Village once was.

 

“…Come on lets…lets go look for supplies.” Link walks over to the now dead bokoblins and yanks the arrows out of them so he can use them again.

 

Link continues walking around the fallen town for anything he can use to combat in the future. A lot of the weapons around were rusty unfortunately, and bows were so rotted away that he couldn’t imagine the possibility of wielding it. Link looks over at a pile of rubble and sees something underneath it reflecting off the sun’s rays. Link goes over and carefully removes the fallen planks and rocks to find a shield underneath it - just the thing he needed right now. Link picks up the dirt cover shield and takes a moment to thank Hylia for it not having any rust on it due to age. Link uses his sleeve to scrub off all of the access dirt and is able to finally see the familiar bird crest of the once royal family marked in now chipped and faded red paint. Link takes out the slate to take a picture of the shield, hoping to ask Purah more information about the shield whenever he sees her again.

 

Link puts the slate away and takes ahold of the shield as he stands up. Before he goes to strap it on his back he catches the shield reflecting an object that immediately draws him in. He looks over at the source of the reflection to see in front of him a lone tree in the distance. Link puts the shield behind his back finally as he slowly walks over to the tree. Epona takes the time while her friend is distracted to go off and eat some grass by a dried up well in the village ruins.

 

Link gets over to the tree and gently places a hand on the trunk. The trunk was thick all around resembling the fact that it’s been around for about a hundred years or so. There were other trees in the woods he explored that were similar in size, but none of them were out in the open like this one. Not to mention that while standing by it there was a great view of the top of the castle and the sky above it, perfect for watching the stars, or birds, or simply-

 

“Fireworks.” Link felt himself mutter out loud those words before he was taken into a memory amnesia once stole from him.

 

***  
 

  _Castle Town has been lively since dawn. Merchants from all across Hyrule had little tents up to sell different products - Gerudos with their fine silks, Gorons with glistening gems, Zora with exotic fish, and Rito with bundles of cane sugar. The town’s residents have been working hard to finish hanging up the lanterns all across town for the true celebration in the evening to start. Couples are cooing over each other by the central fountain, children are running in the streets, and everything was just filled was joy._

 

_Today was the harvest festival. And to a 10 year old Link, this was everything he could ask for._

 

_It was one of those rare occasions in which Link didn’t have to train. Today he could just be a kid._

 

_Link was just getting a free slice of bread from the baker - it pays off to be the Captain of the Royal Guard’s son sometimes - when he bumps into Thea. They make eye contact and Thea is quick to back away, holding something behind her back._

 

_“Thea! I thought you would be at the castle.”_

 

_“So did I. Don’t you have to train.”_

 

_“Not today, it’s the festival.”_

 

_“I see…” She tries to walk past him but he stops her._

 

_“What do you have behind your back.”_

 

_“N-Nothing.”_

 

_Link looks at her with doubt in his face and tries to peek behind her back to figure out what the object is. She is quick to turn around and cover the object with her arms._

 

_“I said it’s nothing!”_

 

_“Sorry, I was just curious…”_

 

_“Well don’t be! Now I have to go.”_

 

_“Where are you going?”_

 

_“None of your business.”_

 

_“Will you at least be back here for the fireworks?”_

 

_She started to walk off but stops after he ask her that. Thea turns her head around to look at him, her back is still facing him however._

 

_“Why are you asking that?”_

 

_“Well I…”Link suddenly grew nervous and looks down, he begins to fiddle with the hem of his cream colored tunic. He usually didn’t ask or talk much to people besides family due to his shyness so the coldness and annoyance in Thea’s eyes only made the feeling worse inside. “I think they’re cool…so maybe we could you know…see them together.” Link looks back up at her and sees that the hardness in her (e/c) eyes has faded._

 

_“Maybe…I don’t know if I’ll be back by then.” She turns her head back around away from him. “You’re just gonna have to enjoy them without me.”_

 

_Before Link could say anything else she ran off into the crowd of people and out of his sight. He kept looking at the crowd in devastation before an elder man’s hand rests on Link’s right shoulder._

 

_“Don’t feel bad, I’m sure Thea didn’t mean to be so harsh.” The man spoke in a thin, gentle voice. Link recognized the man automatically due to the voice and the quick flash of light his glasses reflected off of the sun. It was Lenus, the castle’s court physician. He’s known him since that incident three years ago in which he caught hypothermia. Thinking back on that memory it only made Link feel worse. They quickly became friends since that event and during the short time he’s known her he never once saw her raise her voice or speak with any trace of anger in her tone. So what’s with the change of attitude? Surely he must’ve done something wrong._

 

_“Did I say something wrong?” Link asks as he looks up at Lenus._

 

_“Of course not Link,” the man kneels down to Link’s eye level, his hand still on Link’s shoulder. “Today just reminds her of some touchy subject matter.”_

 

_“I don’t understand…”_

 

_“Has she ever told you about her family?”_

 

_“I just thought you were her grandfather.”_

 

_Lenus chuckles. “That’s touching, but Thea and I are not related by blood. Thea’s only known family member was her mother.”_

 

_“Was...?”_

 

_Lenus stands back up and looks up at the sun that’s threatening to set. “If you wish to see her she’ll probably be in Mabe Village. Her mother grew up there.”_

 

_Link nods. “Thank you.”_

 

_Lenus watches as Link goes off by himself to Castle Town’s neighboring village._

 

***

  _It was almost night by the time Link reaches the settlement. All the lights were on in each of the houses and people were still up celebrating. The celebration wasn’t as big as it is in Castle Town, but it was still charming._

 

_Link wanders all around town for any trace of a girl with black hair styled in pigtails. He soon finds her, but she is not in the village. Instead she is far away kneeling over something. Link smiles in relief in seeing her and runs over to her._

 

_As he gets closer to her he hears her voice. But Thea wasn’t talking no she was…singing. Link quietly approaches closer so he can hear the words._

 

_“The goddesses have made you and I_

_so don’t cry I will come back_

_Like how flowers rise from a distant past_

_and if the goddesses have wanted it_

_Then I will see you again_

_Because to you I am your light_

_and to me you are my night”_

 

_Link steps on a twig and Thea stops singing and whips her head back quickly to where Link is. Her eyes widen as she sees him._

 

_“What are you doing here? And how did you know I would be here?”_

 

_“Lenus told me.”_

 

_Thea turns away and mutters. “I told him not to tell anyone.”_

 

_Link kneels next to her and sees that what she was kneeling over was a small sapling. “Was this what you were hiding from me?”_

 

_Thea nods. “My mom always liked plants…so I wanted to plant this in hopes she’ll see it…wherever she is…”_

 

_Link sat quietly and listened as Thea slowly opens up more and more._

 

_“My mom…she died today about five years ago…that song was the last thing I heard from her before she passed away…she always liked singing.”_

 

_Link remembers how Thea held his hand when he was upset that one time so he takes her hand into his. She looks up at him in question._

 

_“It’ll be okay Thea.”_

 

_Her eyes grow watery and she wraps her arms tightly around him. “I miss her so much…”_

 

_Link felt her body shake as she begins to cry against him. He never really had to deal with other people’s emotions before, especially crying. He didn’t know what he was suppose to say - was he suppose to say anything._

 

_“Don’t worry Thea, I’m sure you’ll see your mom again.”_

 

_He continues to hold her as she lets out the last of her emotions. She pulls back from the hug eventually and wipes off the last remaining tears._

 

_“I’m sorry I got mad at you earlier Link, I shouldn’t have done that.”_

 

_“It’s okay. I understand what it feels like to lose someone.”_

 

_“Really?”_

 

_Link nods and looks back at the sapling before letting out information about himself he has never told anyone before. “My mom also died about five years ago. Back then my family lived in Hateno. My dad couldn’t stand living somewhere that reminded him of her so he decided to move the whole family out here where he worked. He just…” Link pauses as he brings his knees to his chest and hugs. “He just hasn’t been the same since…Castle Town is great and all…but I still miss our home back in Hateno.”_

 

_Thea takes a hold of both of his hands in hers. Link looks at her in surprise, being caught off guard while she looks at him with big, hopeful, (e/c) eyes._

 

_“We’ll go back to Hateno when we’re older and get your house back!”_

 

_“Together..?”_

 

_Thea nods “Together! I promise!”_

 

_Link wasn’t sure at that moment what made his heart leap more: the first firework of the night bursting in the sky or the hopeful smile Thea had on her face. All Link knew was that he never wanted to forget this feeling._

 

_“Link?”_

 

_“Yes Thea?”_

 

_“You’re not gonna leave me before we fulfill this promise, right?”_

 

_Link smiles reassuringly and holds onto her hands firmly, “As long as you don’t leave me.”_

 

 

Epona finishes her meal and trots over to where Link is and nudges him with her snout. But she got no reply from him, not even a pet or words of affection. All Link did was continue staring blankly at the castle covered in malicious clouds and his hand against a tree truck that symbolized all the years that have past since that memory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading! This story has reached over 50 kudos and 1000 hits!!! I cannot thank you enough for all the love!


	11. The Truth I Couldn't Tell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The truth hurts because it's real. It hurts because it mattered. And that's an important thing to acknowledge to yourself."
> 
> -John Green

***The title for this chapter is inspired by the song "The Truth Untold" by BTS.***

 

 

 

***English cover sung by Emma Heesters

 

 

 

* * *

 

(Y/n) threw the last bits of dry wood into the fire pit before sitting besides it. Tass has been given her more and more days off lately at the stables, and she can see why. Ever since she entered the Spirit Plane for the first time ever by her own will she has not been herself. Just yesterday she caught herself wandering around in thought and it took Tass shouting at the top of his lungs for her to realize she wandered waist deep into the river’s water. The day before she kept messing up people’s names, and she has only gotten about 2 hours of sleep in the past three days combined. Perhaps the woman was right, maybe she did push herself too hard for answers she wasn’t ready for.

 

Actually she should probably stop calling the woman “the woman” and instead refer to her as “Thea”.

 

Thea, that name in her head made her nauseous. It was surreal at first to have met a completely different person - or spirit, it’s kinda up in the air at the moment - that wasn’t her yet was still her because they share the same soul, but as the days go on since her interaction with the Spirit Plane, the more angry she was at it.

 

If Thea was the medicine, then (y/n) the was the awful aftertaste you get after taking it. At least, that’s how (y/n) felt about the whole situation. She felt more and more like a hand-me-down and less like her own self. She felt like nothing but a tool for an agenda she was oblivious about until “Mr. Cute Amnesiac Boy” showed up.

 

She won’t deny it he is cute, but now it feels like she -must- love him. Why can’t this just be a simple crush that she’ll get over in a week and not a soul-crushing, destiny-inducing romance? Even if she did “love” him, could they even be considered her own emotions at this point? Are her growing feelings even real? The aftertaste metaphor just intensifies the more she falls into this rabbit hole of thoughts.

 

A loud bark from Violet finally saves her from her thoughts - thank Hylia because the poor girl was about to tear her hair out in frustration. (Y/n) looks over at the Hylian Retriever who whimpers out for attention.

 

“Thanks Violet,” the girl speaks softly as she reaches over and scratches behind the dog’s ear, “you always seem to be looking out for me.”

 

The dog wages her tail in joy and pants happily as (y/n) takes the time to thank Hylia for creating dogs.

 

***

 

Link shivers violently as he takes another swing of the spicy elixir in hopes of it warming him up. He’s been caught in a downpour for the past hour, and the heavy winds hitting against his soaked clothes didn’t help with his condition at all. He regretted leaving Epona at the stables but at the same time knew that his animal friend wouldn’t appreciate the weather. He remembers everyone at the stables suggested to leave her behind since the road to Zora’s Domain was too muddy and not suitable for a horse. He was glad Epona was safe, but that didn’t change the fact that he was cold, soaked, and miserable. The pouring rain made it almost impossible for him to see the giant glowing luminous stones carved into a bridge and towerscoming up in the distance, despite the fact that he had his hood up to try to keep some of the rain away.

 

“Say hey there, young one!”

 

Link suddenly becomes alert and look for the source of the voice. It chuckles at his confusion.

 

“Up top above you!”

 

Link looks up to see a crimson figure standing onto of a tower before it jumps down to the ground to his level - but not without doing a summersault and a few other showy tricks. The figure stands straight up with his body twice as big at Link and muscles that could crush Link in an instant. The figure’s crimson scales and plethora ofjewelry hanging on his body shimmer despite the disgusting weather. The figure looks down at Link with piercing golden eyes that instantly soften at the sight of the Hylian.

 

“Pardon the entrance, but you’re a Hylian, aren’t you?” The man throws his arms out as if he’s about to hug the air. “The name is Sidon, the Zora Prince, and I was hoping perhaps you’d have a moment to talk.”

 

***

 

“(Y/n)…(y/n)…(y/n)!”

 

The young woman finally hums in response to Tass, but is still staring at the now dying fire. She has been staring at it all day, lost in her own thoughts. Tass puts a hand on her shoulder.

 

“Do you know how late it is…?”

 

She shakes her head. “No, not really.”

 

“It’s midnight, you need to get some rest.”

 

She sighs and stands up reluctantly. She walks past Tass without giving him a glance or any form of acknowledgement. She was just so worn out, and she knew it was because of her head. Her own thoughts were causing her exhaustion. (Y/n) closed her door behind her and begins to change into a loose fitting tunic and shorts. She sighs again as she tosses her dirty clothes to the side, not even bothering to put them in the hamper. She flops on the bed and looks up at the ceiling. It seems like all those lost hours of sleep finally caught up on her. Despite fatigue taking over her body her mind was still exploding with thoughts about what emotions are hers or not hers. She closes her eyes to try to let her physical exhaustion take over but the thoughts keep getting louder. And louder. And louder. And louder. And louder. But one thought stuck out from all the other ones the most.

 

_You know it’s real when it hurts._

 

***

 

“Link! You have arrived!” Sidon was sprinting towards the entrance where the Hylian is. Link waves a hello to the Zora and Sidon gives him a toothy grin.

 

“I’ve been waiting for you!” He opens his arms up once again in enthusiasm. “Welcome to Zora’s Domain, the pride of my people. Come the king is expecting you, follow me.”

 

Link begins to follow the massive Zora before someone grabs onto his shoulder. Link looks up to see a Zora with dark colored scales garbed in silver accessories and holding a giant spear with the tip the shape of a fin. The Zora looks at him as if he’s seen a ghost.

 

“Master Link is that...really you?”

 

“What...?”Link keeps looking at the Zora confused. Was he suppose to know him? And what’s with the formality?

 

“It’s me, Rivan!” The Zora kneels down and hugs him. “I thought you died with all the other champions! I’m so glad you’re alive!”

 

“Wha- father!” The solider on duty with him slams her end of her spear to the ground. “We’re on duty! You can’t do that-“

 

“Look Dunma! Look!” Rivan spins Link around so Link can see his daughter, hands still firmly grasped onto Link’s arms, and tears brimming his eyelids. “It’s -the- Master Link in the flesh! You remember the stories I told about him”

 

The daughter rolls her eyes and looks away from her dad in embarrassment. “Yes yes the Hylian Champion who trained you with the sword when you were young.”

 

Dunma’s father beams in delight. “I’m so happy to see you again Link! And my have you aged well for a Hylian-“

 

“Father must you be so loud? There are children sleeping. Besides doesn’t Prince Sidon have business with him?”

 

“Oh right right I forgot.” The Zora finally releases the Hylian from his clutches and stands back him. “You better hurry Master Link, the prince is quite the impatient man.”

 

“Right…” Link begins to walk away from him.

 

“Oh and one more thing Master Link.”

 

Link turns to look at Rivan again, the formality in his name still an uneasy sound to his pointy ears. “Yes?”

 

“You may want to stay away from the elders. A hundred years is a long time for a Hylian, but not for the Zoras.”

 

 ***

 

_(Y/n) opens her eyes to see that she is no longer in her room. Instead she is on a bridge leading up to a gate. The gate’s doors were wide open and were the entrance to amassive castle. It looked exactly like Hyrule Castle, but without the clouds of malice and deteriorating exterior; it looked like the paintings done of it before the Calamity meaning-_

 

_“I’m in a dream.” She spoke out loud. She turns and gasps in fright as a giant carriage rides towards her. She covers her face to protect herself from the sight of it crashing into her but nothing; it went right through her. She lowers her arms in confusion due to the lack of pain she should be feeling and watches as a man on a horse rides through her body, and another one, and another one._

 

_“Yep definitely a dream.” She examines herself and notices how she is still in the same clothes she changed into. Honestly, she doesn’t remember her falling asleep, but this is better than nothing. None the less it did seem odd. This didn’t feel like her normal dreams._

_“WAIT!”_

_(Y/n) turns towards where the voice was coming from -which was from the gate’s entrance- and eyes widen as she comes face to face with a young woman. The female was running towards where she is, long charcoal colored hair going down to her waist, despite it being in a high ponytail, flowing in the wind as she runs and pale skin radiating in the sun. It wasn’t those appearances that caught (y/n) off guard; it was her eyes. The woman’s eyes were the same (e/c) color as (y/n)’s, the same shape, the same everything. That’s what convinced (y/n) that without a doubt she was looking at her past self. Not only that, but in this memory she wasn’t experiencing it as if she was Thea like the other couple of ones she has seen; she’s viewing it from the outside looking in._

 

*** 

 

“Link, do you understand now why you must calm the Divine Beast Vah Ruta? If it continues to go in this state then all of Hyrule with flood with no sign of any recovery afterwards.”

 

Link kneels before the king and puts a hand to his chest. “I understand your majesty. I will assist Prince Sidon in taking back Vah Ruta.”

 

The king smiles in relief and urges Link to stand back up. “It is amazing how courageous you still are Hylian Champion, even with the absence of your memories. Link, I will know bestow upon you something I believe will aid you with this quest.”

 

An assistant who has up until now been quietly standing besides the king walks over to Link and hands him a piece of armor. It’s base color was blue with scales delicately woven into the fabric and accessorized with pieces of silver and gems that imitate the armor the Zora of the Royal Guard wear. Link feels his eyes get lost in the beauty of the craftsmanship before a loud Zora of the council stomps his foot and cry out in disproval, his cry echoing in the large throne room causing everyone into jump and look at the elder.

 

“King Dorephan how could you?! How -dare- you give a-a-a -Hylian- something so precious as that?! Much less Mipha’s own murderer!”

 

Sidon eyebrows furrow at the insult. “Muzu-“

 

The elder cuts off Sidon before Sidon could come up with a decent rebuttal. “I would rather watch Hyrule flood and everyone die than let this man have the princesses engagement present to her beloved.”

 

Link eyes widen, fearing the man’s wrath and the recent words he just said. “Engagement gift?”

 

“Oh right.” Muzu looks at Link with pure hatred. “I forgot how uncultured you Hylians are. The Zora Princesses for many generations have made a special armor to give to their soon to be wedded husband. And I won’t let the last thing made by Princess’s own hands to aid such a savage like you!”

 

“Muzu that’s enough!” Sidon walks over to the elder and towers over him. “I brought Link here. He is my guest in this domain and I expect the head of the council to give him the respect he deserves.”

 

“Tch.” Muzu shoves past Sidon. “I will never respect the man who caused the princess’s death.”

 

Before Sidon could get a last say Muzu trudged do the stairs. The room was left in silence and Link continued to look at the distraught prince. The prince turns to look at Link and gives him a reassuring smile, although it was easy to see the sadness behind it.

 

“Do not worry Link it’ll be okay. Now, I would like to see you with that armor on.”

 

***

 

_(Y/n) watches as Thea runs past her and follows her movement as she maneuvers herself around the other horses and carriages. (Y/n) uses her ghost like abilities to her advantage and simply walks through them as she follow’s Thea’s movements. She catches up to Thea right as Thea grabs onto a young man’s shoulder who is walking away from her besides his horse and (y/n) recognizes who exactly he is without a moment’s hesitation. Sapphire eyes turn and make eye contact with Thea in surprise, confirming (y/n)’s theory about who it is and sure enough she was right - it was Link._

 

_“Thea? What are you doing here? Don’t you have work at the castle?”_

 

_“Why didn’t you tell me you were leaving?”_

 

_Link looks away and reaches up his right hand to rub the back of his neck. “I didn’t think it would be such a big deal. I’m just going to Zora’s Domain. I already told you before about the increasing Lynel problems they’ve been having; I’m just going to check to make sure everything is okay.”_

 

_“Will you be back tonight?”_

 

_“Probably, why?”_

 

_“I-I...”she begins to clam up and she looks down as he looks back at her. (Y/n) begins to feel her heart thump violently against her chest and her palms sweat. Is this what Thea is feeling? It must be. Even though she wasn’t viewing the scene in Thea’s point of view, she still felt everything she was feeling in the memory._

 

_“I-I was hoping you be back by tonight...there’s something I need to tell you.”_

 

_“Ok, the usual place?”_

 

_She nods, looking back up at him and (y/n) feels the beating of her heart intensify._

 

_“Alright I’ll meet you there.”_

 

_Through the crowd time stopped between the two and (y/n) feels a sense of deja vu over their interaction.It was just like when Link was heading to Zora’s Domain in her time before Epona took off with her rider. (E/c) were staring back at cerulean once again. Link is the first to withdraw from the moment._

 

_“I’ll see you soon.”_

 

_“Ok.”_

 

_Link climbs onto what (y/n) could assume was the original Epona._

 

_“Wait!”_

 

_Link turns to her. “Yes Thea?”_

 

_The way he says her name makes her stomach flip and (y/n) felt it too. “I...s-stay safe.”_

 

_Link smiles earnestly. “Of course.”_

 

_With a gentle nudge he urges Epona to move forward and he rides out to Zora’s Domain. Thea turns away and exhales out loud to try to force her nerves out before walking back towards the castle. (Y/n) follows her, every so often she would run in front of her only to have Thea walk right through her body with no acknowledgement of her presence. She wonders if this is how spirits feel: seeing everything unravel before her but given no control over it. The path up to the castle was tiring and (y/n) found herself panting and wishing to take a break, but Thea was unfazed with the walk and just kept going straight ahead. Did she also run down this path to meet up with Link?_

 

_When they finally reached the castle (y/n) stood there in complete awe at the size of it up close along with how sturdy and well detailed the structure was. She looks over to find that Thea had left without her._

 

_“Wait up!” (Y/n) cried out even though she knew that she couldn’t hear her. She sprints to catch up with Thea as she enters the interior from the back._

 

_The interior of the castle was even more extravagant than on the outside, just one hallway alone was covered in painted portraits and chandeliers that dangled tastefully carved diamond pieces. In all her years of living she has never seen something so expensive and well made. Was this really Hyrule before the Calamity?_

 

_Thea ran her fingers again the wallpaper humming to herself as she open up the curtains to let light shine through the hallway. (Y/n) keeps looking at her dreamy like gaze and is caught in the soothing sound of her humming. She wasn’t seeing the world through Thea’s eyes, but she still felt everything, from the soft touch of the curtains to the relaxed feelings inside her heart. In that moment they were two different people but shared emotions and sensations, and that is what made the dream so unique than from the other ones._

 

_“Hey Thea!”_

 

_Thea retreats from her dream like state to address the ginger-haired girl who called out her name. “Yes what is it?”_

 

_The girl was holding out a metal tray with tea cups on top of small plates made out of porcelain. “I was wondering if you can take this back to the kitchen for me. I have to go assist someone with the laundry.”_

 

_“Of course.” Thea takes the tray into her hands and starts going towards the kitchen. (Y/n) follows, curious about what the other sections of the castle look like in its prime. As they reach closer to the kitchen, (y/n) begins to pick up the smell of crepes and eggs being made along with the sound of sizzling and pans banging against each other as they get taken on and off the stoves. Thea was about to reach the entrance to the kitchen area before her Hylian ears pick up chatting from the room next to the kitchen._

 

_“I heard the princess is postponing her trip to Deya Village.”_

 

_“Really why is that?”_

 

_“Well isn’t it obvious? Her appointed knight had business to attend to today in Zora’s Domain.”_

 

_Thea immediately knew that they were talking about Link. Her curiosity got the best of her and she decides to lean her back against the wall near the room’s entrance and listen without anyone knowing that she is eavesdropping. (Y/n) on the other hand, knew that she wouldn’t be seen and decides to keep watching them in front of the entrance. The maid on the left looked to be around her forties and was a heavyset lady with brown hair styled into two braids. She couldn’t see much other her face, but knew that the lady defiantly had freckles. (Y/n) decides to nickname the lady “Freckles”. The other one on the right was a thin woman in her early twenties. Her blonde hair was in a bun. (Y/n) mentally nicknames her “Blondy”._

 

_“Really what kind of business?”_

 

_“I don’t know some kind of monster problem or whatever.” Freckles puts her hands on her hips and her voice increases in arrogance. “Personally I think it’s because of something else.”_

 

_Blondy’s curiosity increases with the statement. “Something else?”_

 

_“Well, you know the Princess of the Domain has history with him don’t you?”_

 

_“Of course, everyone knows that.”_

 

_“Well,” Freckles took a moment to fix her hair before continuing, “I was talking to a merchant the other day who traveled to the Domain before he got to Castle Town, and he mentioned the fact that the Princess approached him during his visit. She requested some metals and other rare things. Of course he had it on him, but all those materials hinted that she was planning on making something.”_

 

_“Making what?” Blondy was growing more and more impatient._

 

_“A sort of armor.”_

 

_“What does this have to do with him?!”_

 

_Freckles puts a finger to Blondy’s lips, hinting at her to keep her voice down in case anyone was eavesdropping on their conversation. After a moment of silence, Freckles lowers her finger and then speaks in a low voice. “Zora royalty usually propose to their beloved with an armor made with their own hands.”_

 

_Blondy squeaks at the revelation. “He’s getting married?!”_

 

_“Oh my Hylia, keep your voice down!”_

 

_“Sorry sorry I just- I always thought he would fall in love with Princess Zelda instead.”_

 

_“I mean, I’m not saying it’s definite that he’s marrying her, but now that you mention it, he does have quite the chemistry with Zelda.”_

 

_“Both princesses have an equal chance with him.” Blondy sighs sadly. “There goes my chances with him.”_

 

_Freckles scuffs. “At least -you- know you don’t have a chance with him. Some people are still so delusional about that fact.”_

 

_“I wouldn’t say that.”_

 

_“Oh honey you really are new around here aren’t ya? Well you’re lucky cause honestly it’s pathetic.”_

 

_“What is?”_

 

_Freckles looks around one more time to make sure no one could hear her before laying all her venom down. “There’s this one servant name Thea who thinks she’s friends with the knight, but I know damn well he doesn’t want anything to do with her, he’s just too soft to tell her the truth. But she’s too dumb to take the hint and believes that he actually likes her.”_

 

_Blondy’s voice decreased in volume as well. “Even if he did like her? Wouldn’t it be frowned upon.”_

 

_“Of course it would. Face it, he comes from a long line of knights and is probably on his way to becoming a nobleman with the title “Champion” and all. I’m pretty sure his father would kill him before allowing him to marry down his social ranking much less a servant who’s nothing more than a bastard. It’s not like he doesn’t have other choices. Like we said before he has two princesses willing to give their love to him, he would be stupid to not take that chance of going up a class. And I’m sure both of their fathers would welcome the idea, he’s the Hylian Champion after all.”_

 

_“Did you…did you just call her a bastard?”_

 

_“Yeah because it’s the truth. You forget that I come from the same village as her mother. I remember that bitch fleeing the place after the father rejected the child.”_

 

_“Why hasn’t this come out yet? Everyone would riot if they found out a bastard was working in the castle.”_

 

_“Because they would rather believe a senile physician then someone who actually saw the whole scene with their own eyes.”_

 

_CRASH!_

 

***

 

“Unbelievable…the armor…it fits him perfectly!”

 

“You see Muzu, Link was the one Mipha was in love with a hundred years ago. He was the one she planned on giving the armor to.”

 

“No…no!” The elder stomps his foot in anger. “No she would never love someone so-so-so vile!”

 

“Muzu, now is not the time to hate on him! We are running out of time and Link is the only one who can calm Vah Ruta down.”

 

Muzu and Sidon continued to argue, the argument giving Link a headache and a sense of guilt buried in his heart. Link tries to drown them out by looking up at the statue of the princess instead. Even though Link only recognizes her because of the one memory at Mount Lanayru, he still knows for a fact that the statue represented her perfectly. Even in the memory he could see the permanent care in her eyes even when faced with fear and hate. Link kept gazing at the statue and watched as the Zora slowly comes to life.

 

***

 

_“Link, are you okay?” Mipha kept following him as he was walking towards Epona._

 

_“Yeah, I’m fine, luckily there was just one Lynel up there. I think that’s the last of them.”_

 

_Mipha eyebrows furrow as she sees through the lie and grabs onto his arm and lifts the sleeve up, revealing a deep gash. Link’s eyes widen along with Mipha’s._

 

_“I…I can take care of that later.”_

 

_Mipha frowns and drags him with her._

 

_“No mister you are coming with me -now-.”_

 

_Link stayed completely silent and let Mipha drag him to where Vah Ruta was. She tells him to sit down on the divine beast’s truck and she sits next to him. The Zora gentle pets the beast and it raises both of them up into the air._

 

_“Link, give me your arm.”_

 

_“I told you I was-“_

 

_“Link.” Her usual soft voice grows stern and Link immediately lets her take his injured arm. She lays her hand over the wound. The palm of her hand begins to glow a light blue and white light and the wound begins to close up. Even after all these years, her magic still fascinates him._

 

_“You know…this reminds me of back when you were young.” Her voice wavers slightly as she remembers. “You use to be such a reckless child…and every time you got hurt, I would heal you, just like how I am now.”_

 

_The light’s brightens as it finishes healing the last of the wounds. Mipha withdraws her hands and Link takes a moment to examine is arm which has no traces that the wound was ever there what so ever. Link bows his head down to thank her and rolls his sleeve back down. Mipha looks down at her shaking hands against her lap._

 

_“We really don’t know what we are up against…Calamity Ganon I mean…but…when the time does come…no matter how difficult it becomes, or how many times you get knocked down and injured…I will always be by your side and willing to heal your wounds and then…maybe…when it’s all over…things can go back to when they use to be back when we were young you know…” Mipha looks up at Link, who has been looking at her the whole time. “Perhaps we can spend some time together.” She smiles at him, but Link felt a hint of sadness in the smile._

 

_They walked back to the Domain in silence. As Link is about to climb onto Epona, Mipha grabs onto his shoulder which causes him to turn at the Zora._

 

_“Will you…will you consider it?”_

 

_“Mipha I…” Link had a hard time finding his words. He averts his gaze and decides instead to watch the sun set, knowing that what he is about to say is going to upset her. “I know we can’t go back to how things were before…before my mom died.”_

 

_He felt her let go of his shoulder. “I had a feeling you would say that…”_

 

_Link looks back at her filled with nothing but guilt at what he just said. “I’m sorry.”_

 

_Mipha looks down and turns her back away from him. “Can you at least promise me this?”_

 

_“Of course.”_

 

_“Make sure that you confess to her before it’s too late.”_

 

_“M-Mipha-“ Link feels his cheeks heat up, although his does not know why his body is reacting this way. “Wh-who said I felt that way about anyone?”_

 

_Mipha lets out a broken up giggle. “Oh Link…in a way you are still that young boy I met all those years ago. You’re still don’t know anything about your own emotions.”_

 

***

 

“Link?…Link…Link!”

 

Link eyes snap open and he feels himself out of breath and shaking. Link was laying on the floor now and Sidon was kneeling besides him filled with worry.

 

“Link are you ok?!”

 

“Wh-what happened?” Link mumbles out loud, still having a hard time calming his breathing.

 

“I dismissed Muzu for the night and decided to discuss the matter tomorrow. After he left I tried to talk to you but you just collapsed on the floor and started shaking like crazy.”

 

“Sidon I-“ Link looks up at the bigger Zora to seek comfort in vain. Instead all he is reminded of is Sidon’s sister, Mipha. All he could think of right now was that sad smile she had on her face and his eyes began to water. “I’m so sorry.”

 

“Link,” Sidon lifts Link’s weak body up and pulls him into a hug. “You have absolutely -no- reason to be sorry. I know you don’t remember much of your past, but I can ensure you that you have never hurt anyone before.”

 

***

 

_CRASH!_

 

_(Y/n) turns towards the source of the crash as her chest felt like a horse was sitting on it. Thea’s hands were spread out like she was still holding the tray which is now on the floor along with shattered china. Her hands were shaking violently, eyes widen with tears streaming down them, and breathing quick and unsteady._

 

_“What was that?” Freckles comments. “I swear if I have to clean something up-“_

 

_They hear the two ladies footsteps begin to approach them and Thea begins to panic. She leans down and quickly gathers the broken pieces of china into her apron pocket to hide the evidence. She’s in such a hurry that she cares little about the fact that the broken pieces are cutting her palms deep. (Y/n) on the other hand, does care as she feels the pain get engraved in her palms._

 

_“Ow ow! Stop! Thea leave it! Leave it please! Leave it!” (Y/n) voice grows hoarse as she screams vainly in pain. But Thea does not hear her, so she continues the tortuous deed._

 

_She finally picks up the last of the pieces and sprints away from the scene before anyone can see her. She takes a hold of her dress and lifts it up slightly to help her run faster, but (y/n) knows that she’s also doing it so the dress can absorb the blood that’s seeping out from her cuts._

 

_Thea didn’t know where she was going all she wanted to do was get out. She didn’t know where exactly but just somewhere away from it all._

 

_Thea stopped spinning and found herself in the castle’s garden. So many memories of her childhood flood her thoughts and she lowers herself into the grass tall enough to hide her from the rest of the world, bringing her knees to her chest and hugging them. She buries her face into her knees as everything she thought she knew was a lie._

 

_“Mommy please no you can’t leave me!” Her younger self cries out in the memory while clutching the hand of her mother dying in bed. “We still have to visit Mabe Village. You promised I would able to see where you were born.”_

 

_Her mother smiles softly and wipes her tears away gently. “I’m sorry my dear flower, perhaps you can visit it when you are older.”_

 

_“Mommy I will, and everyone will see how good I am at medicine. I’ll-I’ll-I’ll be just like daddy!”_

 

_Her mother’s eyes widen in memory of her father before they soften again to cover up her inner pain. “Yes, I’m sure he will and is proud of you, where ever he is.”_

 

_But those were all lies._

 

_Thea’s tears multiply and breathing gets harder to steady as she realizes all the lies told to her. Her father was never proud of her. He didn’t even die. He simply rejected her. He didn’t even want her. Did anyone really want her? And now all is left from her mother are old lies and a simple melody about how she’ll come back some day._

 

_But she’s never going to come back._

 

_Thea began to understand why some of the children servants in the castle would call her a bastard and pick on her. They were right all along._

 

_And yet despite it all, it was always Link who stepped in and told them to stop. Perhaps this trait was what made Thea start to fall in love with him. He was always eager to help someone in need without any care about the consequence he would face._

 

_And yet, the one time she needs him the most, he too is gone._

 

_He’s gone off to probably be arranged to marry Mipha. And if not Mipha then Zelda. She was a fool, a damn fool. No matter what, she could never beat a princess._

 

_Thea lifts her head up and looks at her calloused, chapped hands that are now covered in deep gashes with no sign of the bleeding stopping anytime soon. They were the hands of a low life, working class girl, and who would ever want to hold the hands of a servant, much less a bastard?_

 

_She closes her palms and buries her face back in her knees and begins to sob violently with no care of whether someone will hear her or not. She just felt so hurt, her chest, her heart, and her soul. Just everything hurt._

 

_(Y/n) couldn’t do anything but sit besides her and take in all of Thea’s thoughts and feelings as if they were her own. By now even (y/n) was crying due to the pain._

 

_“Please,” (y/n) whimpers, “please no more, make it stop, please. Please!”_

 

***

 

(Y/n) wakes up back in her room with tears still streaming down her face and on the verge of hyperventilating. Even when out of the memory, everything still hurt.

 

(Y/n) rolls over and buries her face in a pillow that is soaked from earlier tears. She tries to ease the soul-wrenching ache by letting out all her emotion in a form of tears.

 

“Tell me why. Why did you come back…to a man who didn’t even love you?”

 

 

 


	12. Change of Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter hit me in the feels when I wrote it so hopefully it'll make you feel something too.

_“Make sure you tell her before it’s too late”_

 

Link groans and rolls over in his sleep.

 

_“You’re still don’t know anything about your own emotions”_

 

Link continues to toss and turn in his bed as flashes of his newfound memory fill his head. Other voices from previous memories begin to seep in, and different images begin to appear before him so fast he can’t even comprehend what they are.

 

_“We’ll go back to Hateno when we’re older and get your house back!”_

 

_“You can count on us for support.”_

 

_“Did you really think I was going to miss Epona's birthday?”_

 

They were pleasant voices from his memories and kind words, but as the dream progressed they became…darker. Some were spoken in a voice Link has never heard before along with dialogue he couldn’t pinpoint to a specific memory he remembers.

 

_“You’re not going to leave me before we fulfill our promise…right?”_

 

_“What’s wrong with me?”_

 

_“Feeling sorry for yourself won’t get you anywhere.”_

 

_“Good luck sealing the darkness!”_

 

_“Don’t you have a princess you -should- be protecting?”_

 

_“Stop following me!”_

 

_“DON’T TOUCH ME!”_

 

Link’s eyes fly open and quickly sits up in bed in a cold sweat. His breathing is heavy, and his hands were clenching onto the sheets so tightly that his knuckles are now white. Link closes his eyes again to regain his composure before swallowing hard. He brings his hands up to rub his eyes, unconsciously hoping to wipe that dream out of his mind. For some reason however, he still couldn’t shake the voices out of his head. One in particular stood out the most: the last one he heard before waking up. It was filled with so much anger, fear, and stress.

 

Just what exactly was he like before being put in the Shrine of Resurrection? Is he even the same person as he was long ago? Is he still a good person even after so long? What happened that caused the person the need to feel such strong emotions? Was it because of him? Was he in fact a bad person back then? After all the Zora elders hate him so that’s at least one sin in his book. Sidon talks about how Mipha loved him, but could he really trust that? Who did he love?

 

_“Make sure you tell her before it’s too late.”_

 

Link lowers his hands back down to his lap and looks out at the roaring waterfalls surrounding the Domain.

 

Who in Hylia’s name did he love?

 

***

 

“Link! Did you sleep well last night?”

 

“Yes, thank you for asking Sidon.” Even though the lie was quite obvious due to the bags under Link’s eyes, Sidon didn’t seem to notice.

 

“Muzu should be meeting up with use soon. He finally decided to cooperate.”

 

“Really?”

 

Sidon nods with a toothy grin. “I knew he would come around eventually.”

 

“Come around you say? Not even close.” Sidon turns around towards the shorter, older Zora. The Zora glances over to Link before speaking again. “I just want you two to know that I’m doing this for Mipha and the Domain. Not for…what ever motive you’re after Hylian.”

 

Link nods, trying to understand the elder’s reasoning. Sidon speaks again, wanting things to move forward and not repeat what happened yesterday.

 

“Alright so the first thing we need to do is gather some shock arrows in order to stop the beast long enough to get Link in there.”

 

Link pulls out his Sheikah Slate to check his inventory. He has regular arrows and fire arrows but no shock arrows.

 

“Uh…do you guys happen to have any shock arrows.”

 

“Silly Hylian,” Muzu lifts his head up slightly in superiority. “Us Zora’s are sensitive to electricity, therefore we cannot provide them to you directly. However, I know another way to get them.”

 

Link looks up from his slate in curiosity. “Tell me.”

 

Muzu turns and points towards a mountain in the distance. “Do you see that mountain? There should be plenty of shock arrows at the top.”

 

Sidon’s eyes widen. “B-But Muzu, there is a Lynel up there! We can’t send Link into such danger!”

 

“It’s okay Sidon.”

 

Sidon turns at the young Hylian who piped in. He gives a genuine smile towards Sidon. “I can take him on.”

 

Sidon nods even though he is still worried. “Right, I will go now and tell my father about the plan.”

 

“Alright I’ll go get the arrows.”

 

“Good luck Link.” Sidon gives Link one last smile of encouragement before leaving Link alone with Muzu.

 

Link starts to walk towards the mountain.

 

“Before you go, answer me this,” Muzu speaks, “answer me this. Why do you still have the Zora’s armor on?”

 

Link looks down at the article of clothing Muzu is referring to before looking behind his shoulder at him. “It would be wrong of me to not respect the late princess.”

 

Link turns his head back around and continues to walk towards the mountain in silence.

 

***

 

No one was awake this early in the morning, but (y/n) was. She tried to go back to sleep but every time she closed her eyes all she could see were bloody hands with blurry vision from tears.

 

She closes her eyes and shakes her head to try and push it to the side as she walks towards the river cutting through the two mountains. She kneels before it and dunks the bucket she was holding into the water feeling the coldness of it against her skin. She takes the bucket out of the river; it’s now filled with the crystal clear water. She puts it to the side and takes a moment to look at her reflection in the river. Her (h/c) hair is a mess with her skin still stained from tears. Her eyes are still puffy and slightly red. She sighs in frustration and begins to run her fingers through her hair in attempt to make it look a bit more decent. Never in her whole life has she felt this vulnerable. Her chest is tight especially around her heart, and yet she feels a sense of numbness and emptiness.

 

Is this what heart breaks feels like?

 

She lets her arms fall to her sides but keeps her gaze on the water. Her whole body had a dull ache still and she was breathing in shallow breaths.

 

“Is this what you felt? These are your emotions from long ago aren’t they?” She begins talking to the water as if it was a person in front of her.

 

“Why do you love him? You were wronged why-“ She closes her eyes and lets her tears fall, unable to finish her sentence.

 

“I barely know him. All I can do is make small talk with him. We don’t have a sort of relationship much less a friendship so why,” she takes a moment to wipe her tears away, “why do I feel this way? Make it stop.”

 

(Y/n) looks back down at the river to see a reflection of her in worse shape than before. She whispers through trembling lips.

 

“Why am I here?”

 

***

 

The monster controlling the Divine Beasts grabs a hold of Link’s neck before flinging him to the ground. Link falls on his back on a floor covered in water soaked to the bone and covered in scratches.

 

“Link! Stay strong!” The echoey voice of the late Zora princess cries out to him.

 

Link clenches his teeth as he gets up, still holding onto his sword tightly. The beast takes the time while he is recovering to fabricate another long spear of a glowing blue material. The beast twirls it between his gaudy, fingers of pure malice before hurling it at Link. Link by then has just gotten up but is quick to roll away the spear and miss it. As he is rolling he grabs a hold of his bow. While on one knee he pulls the bow’s string back and releases a shock arrows towards the enemy’s eyes. The monster with the essence of Ganon shrieks as he falls to the ground. Link grabs a hold of his Sheikah Slate and whips it in front of him and pushes a button. A block of ice forms out of the water on the floor. Link quickly climbs up the slippery surface, now having the higher ground against the malicious creature. Link unsheathes his sword one last time and leaps off the ice. With a loud cry he plunges the sword deep in the monster’s eye socket. The beast shrieks before exploding into a pool of malice that soon vanishes on its own. Link gets up and sheaths his sword back behind his back and sighs in relief while also panting heavily. Link takes one last look at the room before going to the control unit and placing his Sheikah Slate there to activate it. The main control terminal glows a bright blue and in the corner of his eye he sees flashes of sea foam green. He turns in the direction of the new color to see before him the spirit of Mipha, the Zora princess and Champion.

 

“Hello Link.”

 

“Mipha…” His soft voice trails off as he slowly approaches the spirit.

 

“Because of your courage, my spirit is now free and Ruta as well. Thank you, for I am now allowed by this freedom to be with you once again.”

 

“Mipha...I-“

 

Mipha shakes her head and puts a hand up to stop him from talking. “My only hope throughout these years...was to see you again.”She looks at him misty eyed. “You don’t need to apologize, for you granted me my wish. Ruta and I will aid you no matter what. We will annihilate Ganon together.”

 

Link looks around him as a golden, divine light surrounds his body to return him to safety.

 

“Farewell...Link”

 

Link eyes widen as he is lifted in the air.

 

“Save her Link...save princess Zelda.”

 

“Mipha wait!” Link cries out. “A hundred years ago you told me to “tell her before it’s too late”. Please tell me, who did I love? Who did I love all those years ago?”

 

But Link’s words fell on deaf ears and Mipha continued to smile warmly and wave goodbye as the divine force takes Link away.

 

***

 

The light around Link dissipates and he is one again at the entrance to Zora’s domain. Sidon is looking up a Mipha’s statue before turning around and meeting Link’s eyes.

 

“LINK! YOU DID IT!” Sidon cries out in joy and runs over to the Hylian. He picks up his friend and hugs him tightly causing Link to have a hard time breathing.

 

“I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT! I KNEW IT!”

 

The Hylian hits Sidon’s back hard, indicating that he can’t breath; Sidon lets him go, and Link leans over to regain his breath before someone behind him clears his throat. He turns around and sees that it’s none other than Muzu with his arms around his back.

 

Link began to fear the worst. “Listen I-“

 

“Thank you Link.”

 

“What?” Link eyes widen in confusion and turns toward Sidon for an explanation. Sidon simply smiles with a thumbs up which only confused Link even more.

 

“It was wrong of me to judge you so quickly. I shouldn’t have let my past resentments get the best of me. You saved the Domain and freed the princess’s spirit after all. I am sorry for everything I have said to you and for being an ignorant fool.”

 

“Don’t worry about it.”

 

Muzu looks up at Link who smiles, trust in his eyes.

 

“I forgive you Muzu.”

 

Link takes off his Zora armor to reveal a cream colored shirt underneath it that he usually wore with his Champion’s Tunic. He holds out the armor to the elder.

 

“I believe you would want this back right?”

 

Muzu chuckles softly and shakes his head.

 

“No Link, please keep it. It was Mipha’s gift to you after all, so I believe you should have it. It would be wrong to go against her wishes.”

 

Link slowly nods and folds it over his shoulder so his hands are free. He turns so he can look at both Sidon and Muzu.

 

“Well… I guess this is goodbye for now.”

 

“You’ll come to visit right?” Sidon looks at him concerned.

 

“Of course Sidon, but right now I got other things I need to take care of.”

 

Sidon lowers his head. “You mean the other Divine Beasts, right?”

 

Link nods.

 

Muzu steps forward and finally relieves what was behind his back - a silver trident decorated with precious gems. He holds it out for Link to take.

 

“Please take this as a thank you gift from the King and all the people of the Zora tribe.”

 

Link gingerly takes the trident in his hand, surprised at how light it is despite all the gems.

 

“Thank you.”

 

Muzu looks up at Link and finally smiles for the first time in many years.

 

“The Zora people believe in you, Link.”

 

Link nods with determination now in his eyes. “I won’t let you guys down, not again.”

 

Sidon and Muzu wish Link goodbye as he heads down the path to and from the Domain.

 

Link continued to walk down the path in with nothing but the sounds of the wild filling the silence. He kept thinking about the next steps he must do.

 

“I should probably head back to Impa and inform her that Vah Ruta has been freed, after that…maybe…“

 

Link stops and takes out his Sheikah Slate to look all of the objectives he has written down so far. One catches his eye and he clicks on it for more details.

 

_“Objective: Captured Memories_

 

_I finally was able to get all the functions on the Sheikah Slate that were once missing before. Some photos were already on the camera rune. Impa believes that the pictures will help me remember my time with Princess Zelda.”_

 

“Princess Zelda…” Link slowly puts away his Sheikah Slate and looks up at the bright moon along with the clear night sky.

 

The King wants Link to save her, and Impa told him that they were close before the Calamity. It seems like other people are hinting that as well.

 

 

 

Was she the one he loved?

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear I'm going to write fluff soon I swear *continues to dig through a bag of nails*


	13. Free Will

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is pretty much me trying to put a bandaid over a third degree burn

Tass’s memory has been blurry with little snippets here and there of what happened the past few days. It was the middle of the night and his eyes were lazily fixed on the shrine across the stables that shimmers a mysterious blue. In a matter of weeks it went from a simple tourist attraction along with the fallen Fort Hateno to what ignited countless rumors. It wouldn’t bother him that much except all the chatter is about how it being active is the first sign of the apocalypse. 

 

It’s not like the rumors of the world ending were anything new, he himself remembers being told about the evil entity stuck in the castle when he was growing up countless times in an effort to keep him and his brother safe and away from Hyrule field. Some of the stories seem over exaggerate even back then, but now as he stands on Kakariko Bridge looking at tonight’s moon it really made him question the fate of the world.

 

Travelers have reported more and more monster attacks recently and other shrines that have now mysteriously gone active along with towers the size of mountains. Some reported them glowing orange and others say that it glows blue like the shrine near the stable. Monster attacks weren’t uncommon, but now it seems like it’s unavoidable, not to mention some of the enemies are different than the usual- bokoblins that are usually red now have skin variations of blue and even black complimented with more strength against weapons. Guardians that were thought inactive and too rusted to move are now alive and roaming the fields of Hyrule. He remembers about a week ago he got letters from neighboring stables warning him about traveling to Zora’s Domain due to sudden change of weather and constant floods by the rivers. The air grew cold as tension rose even around a once peaceful place. All of it did make him wonder.

 

Was the world as they know it really coming to an end?

 

And then there was his daughter who worried him the most. He knew he wasn’t her father and yet he saw her nothing short of being his own kin. She’s been so lost in her own mind recently and he knows she’s crying herself to sleep every night. It just reminds him so much of when she was younger and having those brutal nightmares of burning buildings and the roof collapsing on top of her. But she won’t acknowledge to him that she’s having a problem and that’s what made him feel worst.

 

“Did you hear what happened? That guy we checked in apparently saw a huge red light shoot from the Domain towards the old castle the other night,” Rensa snickers at his own comment as he approaches his twin brother. “Seems like everyone is going insane these days, I mean come on, if anything it’s probably just a shooting star he saw.” Rensa looks at his brother who continues to be lost in his own thoughts. Rensa nudges Tass’s arm to get a reaction and luckily it did cause Tass to be brought back to reality and look at his brother.

 

“Hm? I’m sorry what did you say?”

 

“Come on Tass, don’t tell me you’re becoming one of those wackos who thinks we’re all gonna die.”

 

“Huh? Oh no, not at all.”

 

“Then what’s bothering you?” Rensa crosses his arm and waits for his brother to reply.

 

Tass is silent for a moment before turning back towards the moon. “It’s about (y/n).”

 

“What about her?”

 

“Don’t act like you haven’t noticed the change in her mood.” Tass side eyes his brother.

 

Rensa shrugs. “Maybe it’s just a girl thing.” Tass growls and Rensa raises his hands up in defense. “I’m kidding I’m kidding!” 

 

Tass continues to glare at him for a moment before his eyes return to the moon again. Rensa lowers his hands and clear his throat. 

 

“I mean, why don’t you talk to her about it?”

 

“She keeps telling me that she’s fine.”

 

“Then there’s your answer-“

 

“No Rensa I can’t just leave it alone!” Rensa flinches at his brother’s sudden outburst. Tass sighs and lowers his head into his hand to calm down. “This is really bad. The last time she was this upset was when- when-“

 

“When she was having those nightmares.” Rensa finished Tass’s statement. Tass nods and Rensa sighs. “Tass she was seven back then.”

 

“How does that make things any better Rensa?”

 

Rensa quietly takes him Tass’s question not knowing himself how to answer it. After a moment he takes a step forward and puts a hand a hand on Tass’s shoulder.

 

“Let me go talk to her.”

 

Tass lifts his head up and looks at his twin. “You would do that?”

 

Rensa gives him a small smile. “Anything for family.”

 

***

 

(Y/n) was laying on her bed staring at the ceiling when Rensa knocked on her door. 

 

“Go away,” She groans.

 

Rensa doesn’t follow her request and opens the door anyways. She sighs in anger and sits up on the edge of her bed.

 

“Thanks for listening to me.”

 

“You know I’m a bad listener (y/n)” He says in attempt to lighten up the mood. She rolls her eyes signaling that she is too annoyed for this shit and he frowns at this. He proceeds to simply close the door behind him and sit next to her.

 

“So what’s wrong?”

 

(Y/n) looks away from him. “Nothing.”

 

“Come on, I’m not that dumb. You can tell me.”

 

“No I can’t.”

 

Rensa crosses his arms. “Well I’m not a softy like Tass, so those comments aren’t going to sway me the same way they sway him. I’m staying here until you tell me.”

 

(Y/n) exhales in frustration before picking up a small piece of leather from her end table and fiddles with it in her hands. Rensa stays silent and lets her use the leather to calm her down. The room grows quiet and all that can be heard are the crickets chirping outside. Rensa’s elbows rest on his lap as he places his head in his hands, trying hard not to grow more and more impatient with the silence.

 

“Do you believe in destiny Rensa?”

 

Rensa’s turns to her, glad that she’s the first to break the silence, but also upset with the fact that she had to break it with a profound question.

 

“What?”

 

“Do you believe in destiny? Yes or no?”

 

“…Have you really been upset this whole time over this stupid question?”

 

“Just answer it already!”

 

“Okay okay!” Rensa once again feels a quick punch of fear in his gut. What’s with this family having sudden outburst against him? “I’ll answer! Geez.” Rensa rubs the back of his head, trying to collect his thoughts, and then answers. “I mean, it is possible that it exists...but whether we follow it or not is another story.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“I mean…I’m sure the goddesses have plans for us,” Rensa lays on the bed and closes his eyes as he continues to speak. “But we also have free will. So even if we are destined to do something we are could just as easily go off that path. I mean, I’m sure Hylia never wanted us to have crime and bad people and yet here we are. She wanted saints but all we give her are sinners…Why are you asking this?”

 

(Y/n) eyes widen and stiffens at the question being directed back at her before looking at the window, her grip on the leather tightening. “Let’s say…” She pauses, not sure on whether she should continue the question or if Rensa would even understand. She averts her gaze back towards the leather in her hands, growing shy over what she is about to ask him. “Let’s say you were meant to be with someone…but they hurt you in the past…would you…could you forgive them? Would you even want to be with them afterwards?” 

 

Rensa opens one eye and looks at her. “Depends on what they did. Did they kill your mom?”

 

“…No.”

 

“Dad?”

 

“No.”

 

“Brother? Sister?”

 

“No and no.”

 

“Dog?”

 

“No.”

 

“…bird?’

 

“No.”

 

“Did they put a knife through anything dear to you?”

 

Yeah my fucking heart, was what she wanted to say but bites back the words and reluctantly responds with another “no.”

 

“Then why are you upset?”

 

“I guess…” Great, now she’s gonna sound like an idiot. “I assumed something… and it hurt me in the end.”

 

Rensa rolls his eyes. “What does Tass always tell you? Don’t assume because it only makes an-“

 

“Ass out of u and me I know I know.” She states this philosophy confidently even though she herself is currently guilty of breaking it, and with that in mind it leaves a bitter aftertaste in her mouth after saying the words. “But that doesn’t stop the fact that I was hurt in the end.”

 

Rensa gets up from the bed and goes over to the window. He goes ahead and rests an arm against the pane; he continues to look outside.

 

“You know…years ago I got in a fight with Tass shortly after our parents died. It was about whether we should keep the family business going and continue running the stable or go our separate ways. Tass wanted to honor our family and maintain a safe house for travelers between Kakariko and Hateno… but I was a bit more selfish. I wanted to see the world. Some things were said, things were thrown against the wall and the next thing I knew I became a wanderer with no family to fall back on.” He takes a moment to look back at (y/n) who has now put the leather to the side and is listening to him intently. He smiles sadly and turns his head back towards the window to resume his story. “I was alone in the wild for Hylia knows how long, probably two or three months when one day I decided to go back and see Tass. At the time I was still arrogant and wanted to prove to him how I was right and that he was wasting his life maintaining our family-owned stable. I was walking along the path between the two peaks when it happened… I got ambushed. Next thing I knew I was a helpless traveler being attacked by a camp of bokoblins. I really thought it was the end of me, but then Tass came out of nowhere and beat the living shit out of every single one of them with a pitchfork” He chuckles at the memory. “You would be surprised at how fucking strong the man is when he’s angry.”

 

There was a long pause between the two.

 

“…then what happened?” (Y/n) asks hesitantly.

 

“…he came over and hugged me. Tears were streaming down his cheeks, he was so happy to see me alive I-“ Rensa lowers his head. “He had every right to leave me there to die and yet he welcomed me back with open arms. I decided to stay there at first because I owned him after saving my life, but soon I began to realize why our parents loved the stable so much, and why I started to love it as well.” Rensa looks back over at his adopted niece.

 

“It was that one place in a world filled with chaos that seemed at peace.”

 

(Y/n) looks down and plays with some of her hair, absorbing everything he just said into her mind. “What does that have to do with me?”

 

Rensa sits back down besides her and puts a hand on her shoulder. “When it comes to people, we have the choice of how big of a role they have in our life. Maybe Hylia does want us to be with some person, but it’s up to us to let them in. It’s our choice whether we open the door for them or not. And maybe opening the door leaves us hurt and down a confusing hallway we never wanted, but it’s our choice whether to continue walking down that hallway or slam the door shut and turn our back on it. I hurt my own brother.” (Y/n) looks up to him as he says these words. “But he himself chose to never close that door on me. He never gave up on me, and for that I owe him.” He squeezes her shoulder gently. “There are some people in this world who don’t deserve a second chance. But if you give it to them, they will forever be grateful.” Rensa stands back up and stretches his arms out. “I just want you to know (y/n) that it’s your choice. You don’t have to follow my advice or feel forced to do anything. Because at the end of the day, you have something the goddesses have given everyone and that’s free will.” He walks towards the door and puts his hands on the door. “I know Tass and I will support whatever choice you make.”

 

He begins to turn the knob but stops as (y/n) slides in a snarky comment. “You know for a crazy uncle you sure do have some philosophical thoughts.”

 

He turns around and sees the first smile in the past few days spread across her face. He himself smiles and ruffles up her (h/c) color hair. He wasn’t showing it on the outside but he was so glad to see her easing back into her usual self.

 

“Just get some rest kiddo.”

 

“Will do.”

 

Rensa, feeling satisfied with his, work finally exits the room and closes the door behind him. (Y/n) lays back down on her bed and looks up at the ceiling, and for the first time in the past few days she feels a sense of clarity. Stress and despair no longer hold her as she slowly falls asleep.

 

Once again she sees the door from before; the glowing blue doorknob signaling that it was the same one that led her to the spirit form of Thea and the core of her soul.

 

She grabs ahold of the knob and instead of feeling burning and pain from before she feels a sense of warmth and wholeness.

 

With striving confidence she opens the door all the way and lets the eternal light take her away.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading this it means so much to me to know that people are enjoying this story.
> 
> Also thank you for everyone who has commented and all my regular commenters you guys mean so much to me and have been my driving force to keep writing
> 
> Honestly this is starting to sound like an oscar acceptance speech I'm going to stop now.
> 
> I'm going to go watch BTS on SNL now
> 
> Bye!


	14. The Unknown

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody welcome back! Here's another chapter for y'all! I'm sorry if this chapter doesn't have enough Link x reader progress for ya, but that's what you get when you decide to write slow burn. Anyways enjoy!
> 
> Oh yeah and I edited the tags if you're interested in that.

“Hello sir and welcome to the Wetland Stable! How can I help you?” The enthusiastic worker cheers the words out to Link from behind the desk.

 

“Uh yes I recently check a horse into your care. Her name’s Epona.”

 

“Ah yes yes Epona. What a gorgeous mare she is. I just need you to sign some paperwork and-“

 

“Help! Someone help me!!!”

 

Link’s pointy ears perk up at the cry for help despite it being covered by his hood. He turns to the direction of the cry to see a woman on the bridge being chased after by a blue skinned bokoblin carrying a wooden club with boar tusks secured onto it with thin strips of vine. Without even thinking, a natural, divine instinct within him kicks in and he begins to run towards her, unsheathing his sword in the process.

 

“Wait buddy! Don’t you want to get your horse first!?” The stable worker cries out to Link. But Link pays no mind to the man’s words and keeps running.

 

The woman on the bridge constantly turns her head back to watch if the creature was getting any closer - and sure enough it was. In a panic, she breaks out into a sprint. Through her fear her foot trips over a rock on the side of the bridge and she tumbles down onto the ground. She turns and sees the creature swing his club down. With a scream she rolls over to dodge the blow; the blow is so powerful that it leaves a gaping hole in that part of the bridge. The impact shakes the bridge and the woman falls off to the edge; she holds onto the side of the bridge for dear life as the violent waters roar from below her feet. She looks up and feels fearful tears cover her eyes as the creature approaches to deal a blow to her head. The blue bokoblin raises its club above its head and then-

 

“Leave her alone!”

 

The bokoblin stops and looks at the source of the sound. The voice was none other than Link’s. Link stands that the end of the bridge gripping onto his sword tightly and panting, beads of sweating falling from his forehead. His eyebrows furrowed and eyes narrow in determination to save her. The bokoblin takes an interest in Link and starts to scurry towards Link with hunger in its eyes. The woman uses the distraction to her advantage and gets back up onto the bridge, panting in relief that someone came to help her.

 

The bokoblin begins to swing his club back and forth to try to intimidate the Hylian. But its efforts were in vain as Link stood there and simply goes into a fighting stance, not in any mindset to back down and simply waiting for it to get closer to him. The creature gets closer and closer, now at arms length away from him, and as if he’s been doing this his whole life, he jumps out of the way of a blow aimed towards his head and cleanly sliced the bokoblin’s head off its body. The head goes flying into the water with the body falling limp on the bridge. Link lands on his feet gracefully and kicks the body into the river as well. He sheathes his sword and puts his hood down; he shakes his head a little to get his bangs out of his face and lets his ponytail blow in the wind freely. He sighs, enjoying the feel of the night’s breeze hit against his skin and hair before turning towards the woman who was still on the ground. He goes over to her and offers her his hand. She gladly accepts it and stands up.

 

“Thank you for saving me. Y-You were amazing!”

 

Link shrugs bashfully, “It’s no big deal.”

 

The woman looks down, “all I wanted to do was watch the river. I didn’t want -this- to happen,” she looks back up at Link, “oh but never mind that, here,” she hands him a bottle filled with a scarlet red liquid, “consider it my way of payment for your service.”

 

She hurries back to the stable by the bridge, leaving Link alone with his thoughts.

 

Link looks back down at the bottle. He swirls the bottle around in his hand and watches the elixir swish back and forth in its confinement.

 

“Leave her alone…” he whispers to himself

 

 

 

_“Leave her alone!”_

 

_A young Link stands in front of Thea, who’s on the ground holding a hand against her cheek, with his arms spread out to protect her from three other boys around their age._

 

_“Oh? Shouldn’t you stay out of trouble little knight? You wouldn’t want to dirty up your reputation would you?” The boy in the center of the group, the leader, sneers at him and takes a step closer towards Link, cocking his head to the side._

 

_Link stands his ground, puffs his chest up and lifts his chin up in attempt to intimidate him - although he didn’t look all that threatening on the outside being simply 11 years old and small for his age._

 

_“Leave. Her. Alone.” Link growls through clenched teeth._

 

_“Or what, you’re gotten hit me?” the leader teases him again as he moves even closer, their heads pressed against each other. Link’s breathing begin to quicken and his muscles tense up, but he has yet to lower his arms down. The kids smirks. “Getting scared aren’t cha?”_

 

_Link’s eyebrows furrow even more in anger before pushing the boy back with all his might, causing the kid to fall on his back. The other two kids laugh at this predicament before their ringleader growls, instantly shutting them up._

 

_“Don’t just stand there, get him!”_

 

_The other two kids quickly aim at grabbing ahold of Link to pin him down. Link dodges them and punches the bigger of the two kids on the side hard. The bigger kid stops in his tracks and holds onto his side in pain before being surprised by Link from behind, who presses on the pressure point at the back of the neck to knock the kid out. The other kid grabs Link from behind and tries to chock him out. Link reaches behind him and grabs onto the kid’s collar before bending down and using the weight of his bent knees to throw the kid over him and onto the ground, the kid’s back hitting against the stone pavement hard. Two down one more to go - the leader._

 

_“Link look out!” Thea warns him, but it’s too late by then. The leader gets him from behind and pins him down. He flips Link around so they could see each other face to face before sitting on top of Link’s chest. Link cries at the sudden weight on him along with the countless punches now being thrown at him. First the kid punches his left eye hard, then his cheeks, his nose, it soon became just punching for just the fun of it. Link lifts his hands up in attempt to slow down the punches but the kid simply grabs both of Link’s hands with one of his meaty hands. The kid smiles sadistically as he squeezes on Link’s fingers and watches as Link screams out in pain. He leans close into Link’s face, enjoying the other boy’s pain and tears._

 

_“This is what you get for trying to save a pathetic bastard.” The kid snickers._

 

_Link closes his eyes and waits for the kid to break all his fingers but nothing comes of his prediction. Link slowly opens his eyes and finds his hands have fallen to his sides along with the kid knocked out cold. He looks up to see Thea panting with her fist still tightly clenched into a fist across her chest._

 

_“Link!” she kneels down and lifts him enough to hug him in relief. Link welcomes the embrace and simply closes his eyes in exhaustion._

 

 ***

 

_“You’re lucky you came out of that fight with just a black eye and a bloody nose. I feared it was going to be way worse than that.”_

 

_Link listened to Thea as she cleans him up besides the river, finishing cleaning up the last bit of dried blood around his nose with a wet cloth. She puts it to the side and grabs a clean cloth from her apron pocket and dips it into the cold water. She takes it out, wrings out the excess water, and puts it on Link’s left eye, which was the eye that got all bruised up._

 

_“Here, the water should be cold enough to help with the swelling.”_

 

_Link quietly thanks her and holds the cloth against his eye. She looks away from him and instead focuses on the flowing river. They both sat in silence for a few minutes before Link breaks the silence._

 

_“How badly were you hurt?”_

 

_“Not much, I just go a bruise around my cheekbone, but it should be fine.”_

 

_“Oh…”_

 

_Once again their conversation fell into awkward silence._

 

_“Why did you help me back there?”_

 

_“You were in danger.”_

 

_“I don’t deserve help.”_

 

_“Why not? My training has taught me that everyone deserves a hand. It’s the role of the knight to protect everyone isn’t it?”_

 

_“Well yeah but-“_

 

_“But what? You can’t expect me to turn a blind eye during a situation like that. Especially since you’re my friend.”_

 

_Thea definitely heard what he said but continues to not look at him and instead lowers her head more so he could see less of her facial expressions._

 

_“…besides we-“ Link feels his cheeks heat up slightly for some reason, “we promised to not leave each other. We have to go see Hateno once we’re older together remember?”_

 

_Thea finally looks at him and he could tell she was flabbergasted at what he said._

 

_“You remember me saying that?”_

 

_Link nods. “I would kind be a bad friend if I forgot a promise as crucial as that one.”_

 

_Thea’s blinks her (e/c) eyes a few times, not knowing how exactly to react to such a statement, before realizing that a smile was the only answer he needed. And so she gave him a small, kind smile._

 

_“Thank you, Link. You really are amazing.”_

 

 

 

Link blinks a few times before noticing that throughout that entire memory he was doing nothing but continue to swirl the bottle around in his hand. He sighs and puts it in his pocket before lifting the hood back over his head. He walks back to the stable and finishes what he originally started and finally got Epona back into his possession, the only creature keeping him sane at this point. Link however didn’t feel like riding on top of her tonight and instead opt to hold onto her reins as he guides her. He leads her across the bridge and down the dirt road with his head down the whole time. He feels himself getting more and more confused the more memories he receives. Perhaps it was because he was remembering them out of order, but even then a lot of them were easy enough to figure out a bare bone formula of where they fit in his life. A lot of the memories are relevant and he can see why he would remember them - the memories he had about Mipha and the very few he had about Zelda - were all roughly within a year before the Calamity. But then there were those other two memories that didn’t fall into that pattern, both memories showed him as a child and both memories involved Thea.

 

Maybe it was too soon to draw a conclusion, but it was odd that everyone around him doesn’t remember her yet she was a pinnacle character of his childhood - at least based on the two memories so far.

 

Link stops for a second to examine the stars to assure himself that he was going the right way. But the endless stars only made his wandering mind worse. Was she up there with all the other stars? It’s been a hundred years, so surely she’s gone by now - but it bothered Link that he has no idea what happened to Thea like he does with Zelda or the Champions. What was her fate? Did she survive? Did she die? What happened? Where is she?

 

…

 

…

 

Where is she?

 

***

 

(Y/n)’s eyes adjust to the light and she find herself in the familiar garden. The tall, lavender-colored, translucent woman stood in front of her. The usual tranquil figure’s eyes were wide and mouth agape in shock.

 

“L-Listen I-I didn’t mean for you to remember that memory so soon. I-I’m-“

 

“I’m ready.”

 

The figure blinks her eyes a few times, her body changes into a translucent sea-foam green, “what?”

 

“I said I’m ready,” (Y/n) slowly approaches the figure and takes a hold of her hands. “I’m ready, Thea. I’m ready to learn more about Link.”

 

The woman continues to stare at (Y/n)’s (e/c) eyes in confusion. “I-I don’t understand. Th-that memory hurt you. You don’t have to do this.”

 

“I know, but I want to.”

 

“I-I-“

 

“Listen,” (Y/n) once again interrupts Thea and tighten her grip on her hands, “yes, that memory did hurt, but I have things I don’t know about that plague me even to this day. It’s better to know and feel pain then know nothing at all. Because knowing nothing makes your mind wander to dangerous territories.”

 

“(Y/n)…”

 

“In a messed up way you should feel happy I empathize with you,” (Y/n) chuckles softly at her own comment, “it proves that you’re not wrong about us having the same soul and a love that rests deep within it.”

 

“I-I…”

 

(Y/n) shakes her head to silence the troubled entity, “I will be honest, it was terrifying the realization that I’m destined to love him. But even then, people reject the goddesses’s plans all the time. We have free will, and I’m choosing to give this love a second chance. Not just because my soul is bound to him, but because I want to; I’m -choosing- to do this. So don’t feel like you’re forcing anything on me.”

 

“(Y/n)…”Thea lifts their hands that are intertwined up against her cheek. “Thank you…” Thea lowers the hands back down and looks at her. “But I must ask…Do you believe you will regret this choice in the future?”

 

“Oh I’m sure I will, I am just a simple Hylian after all, we constantly wonder if we did the right thing or not but,” (Y/n) smiles confidently, “if I do start to doubt, I’m sure you can help me through it, after all we are a team now.”

 

“A team?…I…I like the sound of it.”

 

(Y/n) laughs warmly, “good, now, would you mind showing me a memory?”

 

“…are you sure about this? The more you learn about my past and your feelings, the harder it will be to go back to your simple life of blissful ignorance.”

 

“Wow that’s a harsh way to put it… but I really am ready for this. No matter how much it hurts, I’ll bare through it. If I doubt or grow insecure over my choice, I will fight to overcome that too. We will get our second chance.”

 

“You’re so determined…” Thea looks down and smiles in disbelief over the turn of events, but on the inside she was over joyed because her figure was changing into a golden yellow, “I am glad to have you as my incarnation…now close your eyes, I’ll show you a memory.”

 

(Y/n) nods and closes her eyes. Thea closes hers as well and their hands begin to heat up. (Y/n) takes in a sharp breath as she feels the warmth and energy transfer over to her body, and for the first time she could have a memory without having to dream about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright fellas listen up
> 
> This story has reached over 100 kudos and 1700 hits
> 
> I will say it one more time: 100 Kudos and 1700 hits.
> 
> Honestly I cannot thank you guys enough for this! I started this book back in February and within two months I got all this?! I really thought I was just gonna get like 10 kudos from this.
> 
> Anyways, to celebrate this book's achievement I have decided to write a seperate one-shot smut fic as a thank you gift for you guys (cause who knows when we're getting to the smut in this book if that(this is what I get for writing slow burn T-T). It should be posted you guys can feel free to check it out.
> 
> And once again thank you from the bottom of my heart
> 
> See ya next time!


	15. Guilt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it's been a minute since I updated. Sorry stuff got in the way but we back baby. And get ready cause I put blood, sweat, and tears into this chapter. (If any of you understood the song reference I thank you)

_Thea sprints down the hallway, her smile beaming brightly. Word around the castle was that Zelda has come back from Gerudo Town, which means Link is back, which also means-_

 

_No No, she shouldn’t get her hopes up. Not yet at least._

 

_She goes up the stairs as quick as she was running. Link would probably be where Zelda’s room is. She approaches the top of the steps and sees Link standing in front of the Princesses room with his sword in its scabbard on the ground and his hands on the top its hilt looking at the wall as if it’s about to attack him._

 

_“Link!”_

 

_Link practically jumps out of his skin as he takes a hold of the Master Sword and unsheathes it; he points it at the direction of where Thea was._

 

_“Calm down Link! It’s just me.”_

 

_Link’s fearsome eyes soften up and his puts his sword away. “Thea…d-don’t scare me like that.”_

 

_She chuckles softly while closing the distance between the two. “Sorry, I just haven’t seen you in so long. I guess my nerves got the best of me.”_

 

_“It’s only been a week…”_

 

_“And that’s a really long time for me.”_

 

_“I-“ Link sighs. “I’m happy you’re glad to see me, really I am. But I don’t feel like talking right now.”_

 

_“Huh? Why? I just got here”_

 

_“I’m tired.”_

 

_“That hasn’t stopped you before.”_

 

_“So?”_

 

_“So you’re making a lame excuse to try to distract me from what’s really wrong.”_

 

_“I don’t want to bother you with it, it’s really nothing you would understand” Link turns his head away from her, his blue eyes not showing the usual shine they always have._

 

_“Then make me understand,” Thea sits down on the ground next to Link, leaning her back against the wall. Link shakes his head no towards her and she only huffs and furrows her brows at him, crossing her arms like a child. “I’m not moving.”_

 

_Link sighs. “You always have been stubborn.” He sits cross-legged on the floor besides her and rests his sword in front of him. His lips remained curled in a frown as he lowers his head down enough for his bangs to cover his eyes. There was a long pause between the two and the air began to grow more and more tense as the silence prevailed. Every time she would try to move closer to him, he would move away._

 

_“Link?”_

 

_Link’s eyes narrow in disapproval. “Don’t come closer. I feel sick.”_

 

_“I can get medicine for you.”_

 

_“No, I don’t want that”_

 

_“But if you don’t get better, then you can’t do your job.”_

 

_“I don’t want to do my job anymore.”_

 

_“Why not?”_

 

_He lowers his head more. His bangs are covering her perspective of his eyes, but she could tell he’s starting to tense up, almost like a wolf ready to lash out in defense. “I don’t want to tell you.”_

 

_“Why not?”_

 

_His voice becomes almost a growl. “Quit pressuring me with these questions.”_

 

_“I’m not pressuring you! I just want to know what’s wrong.”_

 

_Link growls and clenches his teeth. He snaps up and looks straight into her (e/c) eyes._

 

_“I killed a man today!” He yells at her, his voice echoing through the entire hallway. “There, are you happy?”_

 

_Thea’s eyes widen and she feels her heart stop for a short amount of time. Link scuffs, turns his face away from her, and starts to fiddle with the hem of his sky blue tunic he’s worn since becoming a Champion. He bites his bottom lip regretting letting that information slip out_

 

_“Zelda got away from me while we were at Kara Kara Bazaar. The Yiga Clan took advantage of that and tried to assassinate her out of the sight of everyone else. I luckily saw it and ran over to save her and then-“_

 

_Thea watches at he tugs at the tunic as his muscles tense up all over. Thea places a hand on his shoulder. He snaps his head up and looks at her with anger blended in with the blues in his eyes. His stare stabs deep into Thea’s heart, causing her to flinch unconsciously and turn away from him._

 

_He continues to look at her, his lips beginning to quiver as the anger slowly turns into guilt. “I tried to aim for the chest. Just get a slash against his chest. It wouldn’t kill him but it would leave a nasty scar across his chest. But instead I-I-“ Link moves away from her touch “I cut his head clean off! I didn’t have time to react to it. I had to stand my ground. I scared them off, but at what cost? They’re going to try to attack again, probably out of revenge, and it’ll be because of me,” he covers his face with his hand, “I know I have to kill monsters, that’s just the role of a knight in general. A knight is suppose to protect the people. But I just killed a -man-. There was a man behind that mask. I could- I could feel his fear right before I did it,” his voice began to get more and more shaky as he rambled on, “Even though he’s a traitor he was once a part of Hyrule. I just killed one of our people!”_

 

_“Link…”_

 

_“If I told anyone else this, they would just congratulate me and tell me I did a good job,” His voice shrivels more into a whisper, “but if I was really doing my job then Princess Zelda wouldn’t have gotten away from me in the first place. My job is to protect her not to kill. I may have been trained to kill, but the training was only to kill monsters not people.”_

 

_“Link.”_

 

_“Just tell me why…why was it so easy? Why was if so easy to kill?!”_

 

_“Link!” Thea grabs ahold of his hands and yanks them away from his face, holding them tightly against her chest and that’s when she saw it. All his talk about his fears and worries about failing everyone and hiding his emotions for the sake of others were never fully realized to her until just now._

 

_The mask he tried to wear broke._

 

_Despite that, it was too late._

 

_Even when he wanted to cry he couldn’t._

 

_His eyes waited desperately for his inner despair to leak out, but it never happened._

 

_What was left was an empty, scared boy, unable to identify and cope with his emotions, let alone show them outwardly anymore properly._

 

_She thought back to the last time she saw him have a genuine smile - heck the last time he actually laughed out loud. That was night before he became the princess’s personal knight. They were in the garden together, he promised to let her help him. She -wanted- to help him. She wanted to save him. She wanted her Link back. She wanted the Link she grew up with back._

 

_But it was too late by then. He was too far gone by then. He was already too caught up in protecting everyone and even himself from his inner turmoil to actually hear her request fully._

 

_He broke himself. And it took killing someone to finally bring back his humanity._

 

_And maybe it was also her fault for not noticing sooner. She was just as blind as everyone else to Link’s suffering. All those times he would exchange smiles to her in the hallways or tell her little jokes here and there were just ways to throw her off and avoid suspicion since she was already onto him. That talk in the garden, their “promise”, none of that helped at all. It just further convinced him to bury his emotions more and fake it out in front of her. How could she call herself his friend if she was even tricked by his facade?_

 

_She didn’t know who to be more upset at: him or her._

 

_Thea’s head leaned against his chest as her hands were balled into fists, clingy tightly to his Champion’s tunic. She felt weak as all her energy went out her body through tears._

 

_“You’re a good man, Link. You’re a good man. Please never forget that.” Were the words she kept repeating over and over again as she cried tears for herself and for Link who couldn’t cry them out for himself. Thea kept saying those words despite her voice cracking, despite the growing lump in her throat, and despite her running nose giving her difficulty to even breathe, hoping, praying that somewhere deep inside that shell of a man, the Link she knew and grew to love could hear her._

 

_***_

 

(Y/n) opens her (e/c) eyes after the memory to see Thea’s translucent figure was a deep shade of azure. Thea’s hands, which were once warm, were not as cold as ice.

 

“Thea…are you okay?”

 

Thea gently gets go of (Y/n)’s hands to kneel back down in the bed of flowers. “I hate how that memory hurts now even to this day.”

 

(Y/n) kneels in front of Thea. “It hurts just as bad as that other memory huh?”

 

Thea nods.

 

“It’s okay. That just means it matters a whole lot to you. You really did love him after all.”

 

“-We- love him.” Thea tries to correct the younger of the two.

 

“…Right, we…” (y/n) tries to say it out loud to get use to it. It still doesn’t sound right in her ears, but she ignores it for now.

 

“But, doesn’t it also hurt you?”

 

(Y/n) doesn’t even hesitate with her response, “of course it does, but remember what I said before, not matter how much it hurts I’ll bear through it.”

 

Thea’s ghostly face bears her a smile of gratitude, “Thank you.”

 

“Hey, it wouldn’t be fair if just one of us had to bear all the pain.”

 

Thea giggles at (y/n)’s straightforwardness of the whole situation.

 

“But, may I just give a little suggestion?”

 

“Anything (y/n)”

 

“Could you maybe, -just- maybe, show me a happier memory next time I see you?”

 

“O-Oh right yeah, perhaps I do owe you one,” Thea’s echoey voice speaks shyly as her body changes into a dusty pink, “how about this, I’ll show you one of my favorite memories next time with Link deal?”

 

“Deal.” (Y/n) heads towards the door and grabs the doorknob. She looks at Thea one last time before she turns it and steps back into reality.

 

There was one thought (y/n) didn’t share with Thea before she left. Link felt guilty over one man’s life, a traitor’s life in fact. So how would he feel about hundreds of innocent lives taken away by an evil he was meant to conquer?

 

That was a question (y/n) thought was best to keep to herself for the time being.

 

***

 

“Okie Dokie Link. I finally upgraded the slate so now it’ll tell you information about weapons and all that jazz so you’ll stop bothering me.”

 

“Thank you Purah,” Link reaches his hand out to take the slate back from Purah quickly pulls it away from him.

 

“Bbbuuttt…word on the street is that you took a peek at my diary.”

 

Link’s cheeks start to burn up a deep shade of crimson, “N-No I didn’t!”

 

Purah’s big eyes narrow “Your facial expression says otherwise,” Purah presses a few buttons on the Sheikah Slate before returning it to him. “There you go. I deleted all the runes. Guess you gotta go complete the trials again in order to get them.”

 

“W-Wait no!” Link quickly takes the slate and frantically checks for the runes. “I didn’t mean to look I swear it was just a peek- oh” his face blushes even harder as he realizes the runes are in tact and he just exposed himself.

 

“Ah-ha! So you did look!”

 

“No! I didn’t-I swear I- b-bye Purah!” Link’s quickly retreats out of the small laboratory and shuts it quickly behind him. He covers his still blushing face with the slate.

 

“Dear Hylia…” Link lowers the slate back down and tries to calm himself down by looking in his inventory. He goes and checks only to find out that he is running out of arrows. Figures, he used a bunch fighting Waterblight Ganon and then he had to hunt for food, so this predicament really didn’t surprise him. Link puts the slate away and throws the hood of his navy cloak up before heading down the mountain back to the village to get arrows.

 

 

 

 

“Hurry up boys! We gotta get this house down by sundown!”

 

Link walks out of the little store with a bundle of arrows in his hands and tries to cross the small road to where Epona is only to be pushed to the side by two construction workers carrying buckets of tools and heavy planks on their shoulders. His gaze continues to follow the workers as they make their way up the hill towards a small bridge.Link’s curiosity grows and he decides to follow the path they were going. He didn’t really look in every spot Hateno had to offer to him, so maybe this was something new.

 

When he reaches the top to where the bridge is that’s when he saw it. It was a small, modest brick home in the middle of two giant trees. There was a small wooden structure next to the house for horses and a small storage spot for the hay up a level from where the main door is. It seemed old due to the presence of ivy growing up the walls and years of damage causing the cream color of the paint to fade and chip. Despite all that Link knew this house all too well.

 

This was his house. And these construction workers were threatening to take it down.

 

Link dashed across the fragile bridge, shocking the workers as they all pop their heads up towards the direction of the sudden intruder and ran right straight to the one worker - a short big-boned guy with a bowl haircut to cover his giant forehead.

 

“What are you guys doing?!”

 

The shorter man flinches at the young Hylian’s tone and sense of urgency, “Th-The town uh voted to take this house down. It was sorta like a historical landmark for some time, but no one really cares about it anymore.”

 

“Well I care. And I want the house.”

 

“W-We can’t really do that.”

 

“Why not?” Link takes a step closer to the man and peers down him. The man shivers.

 

“S-Sir I-I-“

 

“Hold on Hudson I got this,” A tall skinny fellow fashioning a blue sweater opened up to expose his chest and an exotic black and yellow scarf pushes his friend to the side, away from Link and adjust the large amulet around his neck while holding a clipboard with his other hand, “What can I do for you sir?”

 

“I want the house.”

 

“Really? You want this dusty old thing? A man like you shouldn’t settle for a hundred year old house that is ready to fall apart. It wouldn’t suit you-“

 

“I. Want. The. House.”

 

"Oooo feisty aren't cha? You remind me of a man I knew back in my younger years of construction working. Might I add he knew how to use a hammer especially on-"

 

“How much for the house?”

 

“Okay okay. So eager you can’t even let me finish my thought. Perhaps we should introduce ourselves before we get to business. I am the one and only Bolson and the head of Bolson Construction.”

 

“I’m Link. Now how much for the house?”

 

“Dear Hylia you really are an anxious one~” the man scribbles something down on his clipboard before continuing, “you seem like the type of guy who would skip foreplay and go straight to the full course~”

 

“I-what? No!”

 

“So you would take your time with your lover?”

 

“What does this have to do with anything?!”

 

“Ah I see what this is, you’re sexually frustrated. Is this why you want the house? You think a house could make up for your lonesome soul?”

 

“This isn’t what it’s about at all!” By now Link’s face has gone beet red.

 

“Oh hohoho!” The man wipes a tear away from his eye. “You sure are giving me quite a laugh, tell you what? Since you made my day how about I make you a deal? The town was planning on paying me 2,000 rupees to tear this house down bbuuuttt if you give me 3,000 rupees and a few bundles of wood, the house is yours deal?”

 

“Deal!”

 

“Excellent.” The man snaps his fingers and in a flash a worker hands Link a woodcutter axe, “Get to work, I’ll be waiting~” Bolson winks and Link had to refuse the urge to facepalm.

  

*** 

 

It was nighttime by the time Link returned. He was carrying two bundles of wood under each of his arms and five bundles on top of Epona - he’s gonna have to reward her big time for this. Bolson and his other two workers were hanging by the fire by the house. Link drops the wood in front of them and tosses a bag of rupees towards Bolson.

 

“There, now is the house mine?”

 

“Oh hohoho why yes of course,” the flamboyant man stands up and bows dramatically at Link, causing Link to give him an eye roll, “I now present you as the formal owner of this estate.” The workers clap for the man before he stands upright and hands the key to Link. His workers get up and take the bundles off of Epona and from Link. The workers start walking off the bridge towards there homes and Bolson follows. Bolson turns his head around one last time to talk to Link real quick before he turns in for the night.

 

“Oh, and I decided to take the liberty of fixing the exterior up so it’s less…ramshacky and kept the furniture in the house. I hope you don’t mind.”

 

“No not at all.”

 

“I mean some pieces have been replaced, after all you wouldn’t want to sleep in a hundred year old mattress that would be -dreadful-. But stuff like books and knick knacks are still from hundred years ago are still there.”

 

“Thank you Bolson.”

 

“Oh dear, you remembered my name. Oh what a great memory you have!”

 

Link looks away from the man and rubs the back of his neck, “I wish more people could say that…”

 

The man laughs again, “What a sense of humor you have, I hope I get to see you more often, Link.” The man turns his head back around and continues walking off the bridge and towards his house. Link sighs and pets Epona’s mane as he watches the workers set the wood down outside and go inside their homes to sleep.

 

“Thank you…really.”

 

Link opens his palm up and looks at the small key he was given.

 

“I’m going to take a look inside. I’ll be back girl,” he pats Epona affectionately before going towards the house’s door. He inserts the key into the keyhole and turns it, opening the door. Luckily, Bolson kept the oil lamps lit so Link could see the inside before turning in for the night. Link steps inside and takes a look at what seems to be a small dining area. Link looks around to see a small bookcase against the left of the door walking in and on the right a place to hang coats. There was a small counter with a cutting board and various jars on top of the shelf above the counter and cabinets. Link steps more into the house and examines the walls which has three bow mounts, three weapon mounts, and three shield mounts. Link didn’t even hesitate to take the Lightscale Trident off his back and display it on the center weapon mount. Link took a step back to finalize his decision. He felt it best to display Mipha’s weapon in honor of her. As quick as he was displaying it, he was also quick to turn away from it, the sight of it displaying on the wall bringing back memories he wasn’t yet ready to relive in detail - especially the moments right after he freed Vah Ruta.

 

Link pulled up a chair from the table and sits in it looking around the house and finally starting to take it all in. This was his home. His home from a hundred years ago. The last time he saw it he was just a kid and now he’s - he’s an adult. Not only an adult but also a hundred years past his times. It was a miracle it was still here. It was a miracle…that he’s still here.

 

Link shakes his head and stands back up, also trying to avoid that rabbit hole of thoughts and continues looking at the rest of the house. He looks by the staircases to see that there were a bunch of crates stacked up underneath the staircase.

 

“By now the crates are probably there to stop the stairs from collapsing,” Link begins to talk to himself, “But there was a time in which it was a good storage spot…and a good place to hide…”

 

_“Linky where are you?”_

 

_The small child was hiding underneath the stair case behind boxes filled with blankets for the winter._

 

_“Come out come out where ever you are.”_

 

_The little Hylian giggles right before the woman kneels down to moves the boxes back to reveal Link’s hiding spot. The woman gasp enthusiastically._

 

_“I found you!”_

 

_The child laughs and tries to slip away, but the woman is quick and picks him up. He squeals as she lifts him off the ground and into her arms._

 

_“You can’t hide from me forever my little cub.”_

 

_“I can!”_

 

_“Cannot!”_

 

_“Can!”_

 

_The woman laughs and holds her child close to her arms._

 

_“I love you Link.”_

 

“She was beautiful…” Link continues to narrate to himself as his fingers lazily run across the crates, “Her hair was as gold as the sun and her skin was as pale as fresh cow’s milk. Her eyes, were the same color as my eyes.” His fingers stop running across the crates and falls back down to his sides. “She was my mom.”

 

Link walks up the stairs to be greeted with a bed and end table besides it. There were other tables on the side with photos on top of them, and a desk that had some books on top of it. Link walks over to the desk and picks up a book. The book’s title colors were so faded it would be hard to imagine it with color now. The words were still there yet hard to make out exactly what they said, but Link tried anyways.

 

“Ad…Adventures…Adventures in…in Hyrule…” Link’s eyes widen. “Adventures in Hyrule…” Link whispers as he brings the book to his chest, “this was my bedtime story.”

 

_“Mommy! Bedtime story!”_

 

_“Alright Linky, which story should I read.”_

 

_“Adventures in Hyrule! Adventures in Hyrule!”_

 

_“Again? We read that yesterday.”_

 

_“Again! Again!”_

 

_“Okay okay, just give me a minute to find it.”_

 

Link sits down on the bed and flips through the pages, picking each page up as if it would crumble at his very touch.

 

_“Alright sweetie, say the ending with me. Finally, peace returns to Hyrule.”_

 

_“This ends the story.”_

 

“This ends the story.” Link murmurs to himself as he reaches the final page of the book. A wet spot hits the page of the book. Link lifts his hand up by his eyes in confusion only to feel another drop fall. And another. And another. Link closes the book and puts it on the end table before covering his face with his forearms.

 

“All I wanted was to be a hero like in the books, I wanted to be a hero just for you mother and for father as well,” Link leans back against the bed, forearms still covering his face, “I just wanted to save people and look where I am now. I couldn’t save Hyrule. For Hylia sake mom I failed!” He curls up in a fetal position on his bed, his fingers wedged tightly around the sheets as they absorbed Link’s hot tears.

 

“Perhaps it was a blessing that you died so soon…you didn’t have to see your son for the failure he is.”

 

Link buried his face in the sheets as every fiber of his body ached in guilt and anger towards himself. What good is he now if he couldn’t get the job done a century ago?

 

_“You’re a good man Link.”_

 

“Huh?” Link lifts his head up and his sits up from his bed.

 

_“You’re a good man.”_

 

Link blinked a few times and rubs his head. Where is this memory coming from? And why was it just a phrase he was remembering? He can’t remember anything visually with it, and he can’t put the voice with a name.

 

_“You’re a good man.”_

 

“I don’t understand…why do you say that?"

 

_“You’re a good man.”_

 

“Why do you believe in me?”

 

_“You’re. A. Good. Man.”_

 

“You believe in me?”

 

_“Please don’t forget that…”_

 

WHAM!

 

Link was out the door in a flash and on top of Epona. He holds tightly to her reins as he ushers her to move forward. In a flash they were both riding off through the night. They exited Hateno Village with the farmer standing watch leaping out of their way, mostly in fear for his life.

 

“What in Hylia’s name are you doing?!” The farmer clamors out while holding tightly to his pitchfork.

 

“She believes in me!” Link calls out to him.

 

“Who?!”

 

“I don’t know who she is! But she believes in me!”

 

“What? Boy wait-“ the farmer cuts himself off as Link becomes too far away from him to hear. The farmer sighs, “Young love is so confusing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idk if I made any of y'all cry or even slightly emotional but I had a few moments myself. Anyways thank you for reading! Sorry if some of the descriptions were a bit cliche I'm trying to get better at writing emotional scenes I swear.
> 
> Bolson has been by far one of my favorite characters to write. 
> 
> Fun fact: the book title came from what the very first Legend of Zelda game was originally called. And the ending Link and his mother said to each other is the actual text after beating the game.
> 
> Honestly though, these memories are so out of order I might have to have reader carry around a journal like Link does on his Sheikah Slate marking each memory in order.
> 
> Anyways good bye!


	16. Aim for the Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof this week was a mess, but hey at least we got a chapter that doesn't contain crying! 
> 
> What this chapter does contain however is a lot of backstory and lore. 
> 
> This chapter is me struggling to take what little canonical lore (let alone consistent lore) we have and try to weave it with my own ideas while trying to not make it sound ridiculous. Despite all that work, there may still be little details that contradict with canon(I seriously tried guys cut me some slack *continues to smack head with the Hyrule Historia book while computer has the Legend of Zelda wiki opened up in 20 different tabs*).
> 
> There will be more backstory and lore later on in this book but for now I present you this (I'm just praying you guys like my interpretation of things >___<)
> 
> Anyways, thank you again for reading and keeping up with my updates!

“Alright so when are you going to show me another memory?” (Y/n) says to her other incarnation as her feet are dipped in the small pond. Thea is sitting besides her with her knees tucked in; her long gown is covering her legs and feet.

 

“I just showed you one last night. Don’t you feel like you might strain yourself?”

 

(Y/n) lays back on the soft emerald grass underneath her with her feet still in the water. She has her hands resting on her abdomen. “Yeah but I gotta get stronger with these connections or else I won’t be able to see you since this is place rests in my soul. That’s what you told me at least.”

 

Thea nods and lays beside her on her side, propping one elbow up to rest her head against it. “You are right, and I’m actually surprised you can come to this realm so often in such a short amount of time.”

 

“What can I say I’m a fast learner.”

 

Thea eye’s narrow despite a small smile creeping up her lips. “Don’t get too cocky.”

 

“I’m not being cocky.”

 

“Mmm that’s debatable.”

 

“Excuse me?”

 

“I said it’s debatable.”

 

“Wh-” (y/n) sits up instantly.

 

The older of the two simply laughs. “Calm down (y/n) I’m only joking.”

 

(Y/n) sighs before laying back down on the grass. “You know, for someone who’s suppose to be me you have a mind of your own.”

 

“I mean we are different people, the only thing that connects us is our soul.”

 

“That leads me to my next question.” (Y/n) turns on her side to look at the semitransparent figure. “Who exactly are you? I feel like I should know more than just the bare bones, which by the way make little to no sense.”

 

Thea sighs and turns a deep violet, taking a moment to collect her words before responding to the younger incarnation, “to understand how I have become this you would have to go back to the creation of Hyrule,” she closes her eyes before continuing, “in a world of chaos, three golden goddesses appeared with a goal of ending the chaos,” Thea looks back at (y/n), who is concentrating deeply into what she is saying, “for a long time they were called the Golden Goddesses, but these days, they are referred to as “The Goddesses of Old” or “The Ancient Goddesses,” Thea breathes in the smell of the earth against her face and closes her eyes, “Anyways, Din, the goddess of power, created the land we walk on. Nayru, the goddess of wisdom, created law and order for the freshly made land. Farore, the goddess of courage, created inhabitants to live and prosper on the land. The new world brought hope. Another goddess was born from this hope. Her name is Hylia. But, there was still fragments of chaos lurking in the land. The Golden Goddesses ,however, felt that the birth of Hylia meant that the world was going to be okay as long as she was around to protect the newly formed world. When the time came for them to return to the heavens, the goddesses created the Triforce, a sacred relic with the essence of all three of them, and handed it to Hylia to protect along with the land.”

 

Thea’s body gently transform from the deep violet to a baby blue. “The current life forms back then had an ability to some extent to hear the Golden Goddesses, but not Hylia. Due to the new role she was given, Hylia decided to create the Sheikah, a tribe who could communicate with her should anything happen to the land, and,” Thea smiles softly, “Us, the Hylian race. Hylians are special because we weren’t just created by Hylia, the goddesses wanted us to be something all four of them create together as a sign of their eternal sisterly bond with each other. Din created our bodies to endure hardships and stand strong. Nayru created our mind so we can think for ourselves and know right and wrong. Farore created our soul, or what some people refer to as the heart, to hold our emotions and true desires. Hylia placed light in our souls to make them eternal and be able to live with the goddesses once we die. Finally, all four of them blessed us with the ability to communicate with all of them. Once they were finished creating Hylians, the Golden Goddesses finally ascended into the heavens.”

 

Thea sits up and moves closer to the pond. (Y/n) sits up as well and watches Thea cup her hands and dips it in the water; she lifts up her hands from the pond and lets the water slip out of her fingers. “I don’t think Farore knew how big of a role her contribution to our creation would become…” Thea breathed out the words that were bottled up in her throat.

 

(Y/n) moves closer to Thea and stares at her own reflection in the pond while Thea continues speaking, her once collected tone becoming somber, “Once reincarnation started to play a part, the soul became more than just the home to our emotions and desires. It became a place where all our memories of our past lives and our reason for reincarnating are stored. With memories of previous lives brewing inside us, what was once temporary bonds between two people became the subject to eternal bonds that transpired through time, that is…if the bond was strong enough while the two of them lived.”

 

(Y/n) listened carefully to the woman while playing with a white petaled flower that was weaved in her (h/l) (h/c) hair. “So if we have all these memories inside us…why can’t we access them easily?”

 

Thea scoops up another handful of water and lets it slip through her fingers. “Because in a world made of law and a mind made for thinking, it would make sense that Hylians are to gravitate towards using their head more than their heart while making decisions. The mind and the body are not affected by past memories, which is why with each new incarnation there is a chance of having a different appearance than your past life and even a different way of thinking and personality. These factors cause the person to usually lock up these secrets in their heart to the point in which the normal person with previous lives usually would have to undergo vigorous spiritual training in order to see what their previous incarnations were like…but we…we are different.” Thea looks over at the younger of the two who also turns her head to look at her. “I wanted my incarnations to remember me,” she takes a moment to breath in deeply and exhale it out, “Link…due to the curse…he himself can remember previous lives whether he knows that or not,” she cracks a painful little smile, “It’s probably why he always gravitates towards saving people and is filled with so much courage,” she averts her gaze back towards the pond, “and then I thought, what if what we had while I was alive more than just a temporary bond? What if he also loved me? What if…what if his love for me was in his heart and not his head? Then he would remember me…but I wouldn’t remember him. What if I came back and chose someone else? I just…I didn’t want to see a world without him in the picture. I didn’t want to risk losing everything we had that’s why…that’s why I made the deal. That’s why we can’t go to heaven. I traded heaven for knowledge.” She closes her eyes, her lips beginning to quiver, “Damnit I didn’t even know if he would love me back and I did it anyways…some days…I even regret it.” Thea’s body turns a mournful shade of black as she covers her face. “I’ve seen you when you were a kid. I know about your nightmares and how much my memories affected you. I even affect you as a grown up negatively. I’ve hurt you so much (y/n). I’m so sorry. Some days I wonder...how you are not mad at me?”

 

(Y/n) takes Thea’s hands into hers and pulls them away from her face. She looks deeply into Thea’s ghostly eyes to make sure she is listening to her. “What you did Thea...takes courage. You gave up everything even though you know little about how he feels. Don’t you think that speaks volume of how much he means to you? Do you think other people he has affected before you did something like this? Link probably has been through so many life times and met so many people yet I bet you none of them would go through what you did for him. Thea,” (Y/n) squeezes her previous incarnations hands, “How can I be mad at someone who has done one of the bravest things I have ever seen?”

 

“(Y/n)…”

 

“I believe deep in my heart…or mind that wherever the goddesses are, they are proud of you.”

 

“(Y/n)-“

 

“Thea, I have no idea who and where my parents are, I don’t know whether I have siblings or not, I don’t know and never seen all of Hyrule, hell I never even been to Hateno or Kakariko Village. I have met so many people at the stables who have vanished and I don’t know where they are in the world. There are so many things I don’t know. For fuck sake I want to know something for once!”

 

“(Y/n)-“

 

“I would rather know and hurt then know nothing and live a life full of questions.”

 

Thea freezes and (y/n) feels Thea’s hands turn ice cold along with her figure becoming an indigo color, (y/n) takes a deep breath in and exhales, releasing Thea’s hands before continuing, “I want to know Thea. I want to know your life, your memories, how you fell in love with him, everything. I -want- to know so someday I can love him like you did and have the courage like you had to risk everything for him. Let me understand, so I can walk with you and not away from you.”

 

There was a long moment where neither of them talked and the only sound was the wind blowing up against their skins with neither of them looking at each other.

 

“(Y/n)?”

 

(Y/n) looks up at Thea. “Yes?”

 

The woman’s expression softens, her figure once again changing color to a rose pink. “Thank you,” she takes the younger one’s hand and hold it in hers, “I told you I was going to show you one of my favorite memories. I should keep my word. Now, close your eyes.”

 

(Y/n) nods and does so feeling the warmth and energy transfer into her body.

 

***

 

_SWOOSH!_

 

_The arrow flies at lightning speed through the air and hits the center of the third practice target in the neat, evenly spaced-out row. Thea watches from underneath the breezeway that looks out at the training area as Link takes out another arrow from his quiver and nocks it in the string before stretching it out past his cheek._

 

_“Link!”_

 

_Link gasp in surprise as his arms fly up and his concentration is broken. He releases the bow’s string by accident, the arrow flies high into the air and goes right through a small flag with the crest of Hyrule on top of a stone watchtower before falling on the ground, leaving a gaping hole in the flag. Link huffs before looking over at Thea, aggravation in his face._

 

_“Don’t do that Thea!”_

 

_“Sorry,” Thea has her mouth covered with one hand to try to hold in her laugh, “I didn’t think you would get that startled. I probably should’ve waited until you let go of the arrow.”_

 

_“Yeah, it would’ve been nice.”Link looks up at the tattered flag and sighs, his expression slowly softening up. “You think anyone would notice that hole?”_

 

_Thea walks over to where he is with her arms crossed and looks up at the flag._

 

_“It’ll…it’ll be okay,” Thea tries to reassure him, “I’m sure they can fix it. It’s just one little flag, don’t beat yourself up over it.”_

 

_Link sighs again and takes a moment to lay his bow down on the ground and fix the leather bracer on his right forearm. Thea looks at him from head to toe and notices how he is wearing a white shirt underneath a chain mail and a white colored tabard lined with a strip of navy blue and the red crest of Hyrule on the chest. Along with that he is wearing beige colored pants and tan leather boots that just stop below his knees._

 

_Thea nudges him gently to get his attention. “Why are you wearing your trainee uniform? I thought you guys had no training because the trials for knighthood are today…unless…don’t tell me.”_

 

_Link looks up at her, hand still on the bracer, and tilts his head ever so slightly to begin to nod, but his actions are halted quickly as Thea squeals in delight before hugging him tightly._

 

_“I’m so proud of you Link! I knew you had what it takes to become a knight!”_

 

_Link gently pushes her away, causing confusion to spread across her face. “I’m not a knight yet, the trials aren’t until this afternoon.” Link takes an arrow out of his quiver and picks up his bow again to continuing shooting at the target._

 

_Thea decides to keep her mouth close and watches him release two more arrows into the center of the target before speaking again, “do you know what you are up against?”_

 

_“Nope,” Link notches another arrow into the bow and pulls it back, “it changes every year.”_

 

_Link’s unleashes the string, causing it to make a swishing sound, and once again hits the target’s center._

 

_“Well, whatever it is, I’m sure you’ll do great. You’ve impressed everyone else so far.”_

 

_Link lowers his bow, “that doesn’t mean I have what it takes to become a knight.”_

 

_“Huh? What are you talking about? Link, you’re the most skilled person I know when it comes to combat.”_

 

_“Easy for you to say, you’re my friend so course -you- would be bias towards me. Other people, however, think that the court is just being bias because I’m a son of a Royal Guard.”_

 

_“Well they’re just as bias as I am. On top of that they seem to be jealous.”_

 

_“These viewpoints are also coming from other kids of Royal Guardsmen.”_

 

_“Like I said it’s jealousy.”_

 

_“Thea, the average age of a person succeeding in the trials is twenty-one”_

 

_“So?”_

 

_“I’m thirteen Thea! There’s a seven year old difference!”_

 

_“Well maybe you’re not the average person!”_

 

_Link scuffs and Thea looks at him while putting her hands on her hips. “You need to give yourself more credit Link. You’ve proven your worth time and time again.”_

 

_“Thea-“_

 

_“I wanna see someone else shoot an arrow into the center of a target twenty times in a row.”_

 

_“Thea.-“_

 

_“I wanna see someone else fight a bokoblin camp single-handedly.”_

 

_“Thea!-“_

 

_“For Hylia sake I don’t understand why they can’t just give you the title!”_

 

_“Thea quit being so loud!”_

 

_“No! Everyone should hear this!” Thea throws her head up towards the skies and cups her hands around her mouth to amplify her yells. “Hey listen up! Link is the greatest fighter in Hyrule! If you say otherwise come down here so I can beat the living shit out of you!!!”_

 

_“Thea that’s enough!” Link tackles and pins her to the ground by sitting on her torso and takes a hold of her hands and holds them above her head.”I said shut up!”_

 

_Thea looks up at Link blankly while he breathes heavily in frustration before snorting out a laugh. “You should see the look on your face.”_

 

_“I-I said shut up!”_

 

_Thea throws her head back in laughter. Her eyes shut tightly and bridge of her nose scrunched up. “I never thought someone could get so mad over praise.”_

 

_“This isn’t funny!”_

 

 _“Yes it is!” Thea laughs echo in the empty training area while the blush across Link’s cheeks continues to intensify. Link eventually gives in and gets off of her, he helps pulls her up from the ground_ , _a small smile begins to creep across his face._

 

_“Is that a smile I see?’_

 

_“Wh-What?” Link clears his throat and quickly frowns. “No.”_

 

_“That was a smile wasn’t it.”_

 

_“I mean, I guess I do have to applaud your feistiness,” Link turns his head away from her and tries to play it cooly, “after all you are threatening to fight people.” Link mutters under his breath, “Although I doubt you could win a fight.”_

 

_Thea’s long, pointy ears perk up upon hearing his mutter. “Are you calling me weak?”_

 

_“I’m not calling you strong.”_

 

_Thea growls before bending over and snatching the bow that Link dropped on the ground moments before he pined her to the ground. She takes the liberty of taking an arrow out of his quiver. She stands in front of the same target Link was practicing with. “I’ll show you.”_

 

_She takes a second to position herself properly, pointing her feet 90 degrees away from the target and having them a shoulder width apart. She notches the arrow to the bow and begins to draw it back…well at least attempts to._

 

_The bow’s string only stretches out to her forearm before she has to release it due to the strain._

 

_“Dammit come on,” she clenches her teeth and tries again. It once again only reaches her forearm._

 

_“Harder than it looks huh?”_

 

_“Shut up Link, I can do this.”_

 

_After two more failed attempts she hears the gravel shuffle and well built arms come around her along with their chest pressing up against her back. One rough calloused hand goes on top of her hand on the grip and the other one snakes around to where she has a hold of the string. The hand proceeds to help her pull the string to her cheek bone._

 

_“The key is to remember that you control the bow, not the other way around.” Link advises her in a low voice that sends shivers down her spine for some reason. “Once you take this into account, the rest will come easy.”_

 

_Thea feels her breathing become unsteady and her hands grow shaky._

 

_“Relax, it’s going to be okay,” Link continues to guide her calmly, “take a deep breath in.”_

 

_Thea does what she is told._

 

_“Let go of the string as you exhale and imagine your breath going the same direction as the arrow.”_

 

_Thea closes her eyes and exhales. She feels Link’s hand loosen up on top on top of hers and she lets go of the string. A swishing sound hits against her ear and she opens her eyes to see that the arrow is deeply implanted in the center of the target._

 

_“Ha! I did it!” She giggles before turning her head to meet eyes with Link’s._

 

_“Shouldn’t you be thanking me?”_

 

_“Sorry, thank you, Link.”_

 

_The two of them stay like that. Neither know exactly why they are reluctant to pull back. It only took a loud clanking of metal for the two of them to realize that they were so close to each other while outside in public. They both quickly pull away from each other; Link’s instructor standing before them with his arms crossed._

 

_“C-Captain,” Link quickly kneels to the ground, “I am sorry I did not see you. I will do better next time and address you prop-“_

 

_“Your father wants to see you, Link.”_

 

_Link stands back up. “Y-Yes of course. Th-Thank you for letting me know Captain.”_

 

_“You are dismissed.” The captain salutes and Link copies the gesture before hurrying off, but not before turning his head back and waving goodbye to Thea._

 

_Thea smiles and waves back at him. The instructor waits until Link is out of his sight before turning back towards Thea. His voice becomes colder and sterner then it was with Link. “As for -you- I hope you keep in mind where you are ranked in this world before seducing a man.”  
_

_“S-Seducing?” Thea retorts back at the the high ranked knight. “I have no idea what you are talking about.”_

 

_“Perhaps I did not make myself clear,” The towering man bends down dangerously close to Thea enough for her to smell the aftertaste of heavy wine drinking. “If you get -any- closer to my men let alone -him-, I will make sure the King cuts your head clean off.”_

 

_“You can’t do that.”_

 

_“I can and I will.” The man sneers at her. He straightens his back back up and using the back of his heel, spins away from her. “Just remember that you are nothing to this world. You are a mere servant, the bottom of the food chain.” He clenches his teeth before spitting in her direction. “Perhaps even lower than that.”_

 

_Thea watches the man leave, flabbergasted that what he had accused her of. Why would he think that? They were just friends, she could never imagine even having the thought of doing -let alone think- about doing something like that. And why did he have to bring class up into the argument? She and Link never saw class being a reason why they couldn’t be friends. At least not so far. They only saw class playing an important part when it came to riches, reputation, marriage and love-_

 

_Thea looks back at the arrow they both shot into the target and her breathing begins to quicken. She places a hand on her heart and feels it throbbing achingly in her chest._

 

_Why…Why was her heart beating so fast?_

 

_***_

 

Link pulls the sting back and focuses hard on the tiny statue with a pair of glowing violet eyes. If what he remembers is correct, by shooting this statue a shrine should appear before him. The tricky part was getting the arrow to hit between the eyes.

 

Link’s hands begin to shake, causing the arrow to wobble out of position. Link takes a deep breath in to try to calm himself down

 

_“The key is to remember that you control the bow, not the other way around, once you take this into account, the rest will come easy.”_

 

Link bites the bottom of his lip and takes the advice in his head, stiffening up his grip and bringing the wobbling to a halt.

 

_“Let go of the string as you exhale and imagine your breath going the same direction as the arrow.”_

 

Link exhales slowly and lets the swooshing sound of the released string hit his ears before the pinging of the arrow against the stone occurs. The ground begins to shake as a shrine rises from above the ground, the etchings in the shrine glowing a bright orange.

 

Link walks over and places the Sheikah Slate on the pedestal, but not before placing his hand on his heart.

 

Why…Why was his heart beating so fast?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading and just remember - when it comes to a love triangle, the childhood friend is usually never end game.
> 
> Speaking of endgame, I'm going to see that movie tomorrow *proceeds to buy 20 boxes of tissues and 500 boxes of junior mints*
> 
> Also May the 4th be with You!


	17. Once in a Blood Moon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow incredible! Finally some Link x reader interaction! It only took like what seven chapters ???

Link walks out of the shrine around the little statues and sees Epona waiting patiently for him. He walks over to her and raises his hand up. Epona understands what he means and places her snot against the palm of his hand. He smiles softly.

 

“Thanks for waiting for me girl.”

 

_“...Li...”_

 

Link ears perk up and lowers his hand. He begins to look around to the source of the voice.

 

_“...Link...”_

 

The voice was soft and sounded far away.

 

“…Link”

 

The voice became clearer.

 

“Link.”

 

Link’s eyes widen. “Zelda!”

 

_“I’ve been watching your progress thus far. I see you freed Vah Ruta, and I know that you are getting stronger. However, Ganon knows you are getting stronger and he plans to retaliate. He plans on using the moon’s light, with what little power he has, to resurrect all the monsters who have passed on.”_

 

“Can you not stop him? But-“ A sharp pain hits his head which causes him to stop mid sentence to focus on his now growing ache.

 

***

 

_“When we get to the castle it should be around midnight. I believe it would be best to report to the counsel as soon as possible tomorrow morning about the Lynel attack by Goron City.” Zelda talks to herself as she looks at the Sheikah Slate with Link following directly behind her. “We should also tell them about how there was not one but three of them along with some bokoblins. Oh and make sure you also get that cut taken care of got it?…” Zelda sighs at the lack of a response from him so she continues to talk to herself, “It’s almost as if these savage creatures are forming organized bases, almost like militias. For now we will sleep on it, after all it is late, but…it does seem funny though, the town square seem so lively despite the…” Zelda looks up at the sky and her emerald eyes widen in disbelief. “time…”_

 

_Up in the sky was a moon shining a bright red. A color that blurred Zelda’s mind of nothing but images of blood. The townspeople were quickly exiting their houses to view the sight with the majority crying out in terror. Dogs began to howl, horses and livestock cried and were stomping their hooves over and over, and babies were wailing. It seemed like little by little everyone was going insane._

 

_Hysteria was all Zelda could think of to describe it._

 

_“Link-“ Zelda turns her head towards her appointed knight to only see that he is absent from her side. A loud neigh from a horse points to the direction of where he is. Sure enough Link took a horse with a beige coat and blonde mane from a near by town stable and was riding straight towards the castle full speed._

 

_“I can’t believe a knight such as him could leave me behind,” Zelda went ahead and picked out what seemed to be the calmest of the remaining horses at the stable which was a chocolate coated horse with white mane. She took a moment to calm it and apologize mentally to the owner of the horses - she will make sure she and Link return the horses here first thing tomorrow morning. She grabs onto the horses mane and ushers it onwards in Link’s direction to the castle._

 

_The streets became more chaotic. Any items in someone’s hands immediately dropped onto the floor the second they saw the sky. Link wasn’t sure if his vision was right - considering he was going high speed on his horse- but it seemed as if the sky was getting redder and redder. A woman clamors outside and drops her basket of apples onto the ground causing a casualty. Link’s quick reflexes steered his horse away from the obstacles. He had no time for inconveniences. He needed to get to the castle. If the town square was like this then the castle must be experiencing the same thing. Which means-_

 

_No, there was no time for him to think._

 

_Link’s horse sprints through the gates to the castle and dashes to the entrance of the large structure. He tugs on his horse’s mane to stop it immediately with it immediately crying in protest. Link hops off the horse and starts running towards the back of the castle. In the background sure enough he can hear the same chaos that was going on in town square. But at that moment that didn’t matter. Someone else mattered more to him. He takes a sharp turn and runs towards the back of the castle to where the stables were. Already from far away he could hear their distress despite the stable’s doors being shut for the most part. No, what made him run faster was not the animal’s distress, but rather the figure standing by the stable. Link couldn’t make out who exactly it was, but he already had a good hunch of who it could be and it was the person he wanted to see the most at that moment. It was-_

 

_***_

 

_“All I ask is for you to be careful. Good bye for now Link.”_

 

Link steps out of the memory just as Zelda’s voice is bidding goodbye “Zelda! Wait!” He voice shouts out, raw and hoarse due to the recent resurfaced memory.

 

Link raises his hand in the air as if that would prevent her from disappearing, but a long moment of silence signaled that she was gone.

 

Link breaths out a sigh of defeat, slowly accepting that confusion is becoming a prominent companion. With that, Link takes out his Sheikah Slate and looks at the tasks he had written down. One of them about freeing the Divine Beasts. Link swipes his finger towards the left so the screen can switch over to the map of Hyrule those far.

 

“…I guess Goron City is next.”

 

And with that he hoist himself on top of Epona to go back on the path towards Death Mountain.

 

***

 

(Y/n) woke up with her head throbbing, the light in her eyes making it worse. She sits up in bed and rubs her head while trying to collect in all the information she has learned so far from Thea. She grimaces as a knock on her door feels like a hammer against her head.

 

“Come in.” She groans.

 

The door cracks open and Tass’s head pops in. “Hey, how are you feeling?”

 

(Y/n) gives him a look that causes a chuckles to slip out of his lips. “Feeling like shit?”

 

She nods. “Yeah, another headache.”

 

“You’ve been getting them quite often lately.” Tass walks in all the way and pulls up a chair besides her bed. He sits on it.

 

“Yeah, but I’m sure it’s just allergies.” (Y/n) is quick to respond. “I’m sure I’ll be okay to work today.”

 

“You sure? Don’t feel like I have a knife against your throat or anything.” There was worry in his voice.

 

(Y/n) shakes her head. “No, I’m okay. After all, we all have to do our part.”

 

Tass smiles softly and stands up. He pats her on the shoulder.“Don’t push yourself.”

 

“I won’t”

 

Tass turns his back towards her and walks to the door. He turns to look at her for one last time before exiting all the way and closing the door behind him.

 

(Y/n) yawns and takes a minute to stretch, her shoulder joints making a popping sound as she does so. She swings her legs over so that she is now sitting on the edge of the bed with her bare feet touching the bumpy wooden ground. She exhales out loud before getting up to get dress. She puts on her usual stable hand uniform - a white short sleeved tunic, tan pants, a red colored vest matched with horse patterned stitched into the fabric, a white colored neckerchief, a leather belt around her waist, brown gloves and brown boots, both in which are the same shade of brown as her belt. She takes a second to fix her (h/c) hair and wash her face before walking out of her room.

 

Already there was a bunch of ruckus around the place, and (Y/n) would have preferred it if she could say that everyone from contributing to the noise but that wasn’t the case. Instead, everyone was staring with concerned eyes as a black, bowl cut haired man was raving on and on about what seemed like pure nonsense.

 

“The blood moon will rise…and we will all cower! Cower I tell you! Cower!”

 

The man didn’t notice (Y/n) snake her way over to Tass and whisper in his ear with her one hand covering the side of her mouth so no one could read her lips either. “Hey Tass uh…what’s going on here?”

 

Tass whispers back while he strokes his beard in question. “I honestly can’t tell you, this guy just appeared out of no where and begins crying about some moon thing…it’s really driving away business.”

 

“Did you greet him?”

 

“No. And by no I mean fuck no.”

 

“Why not? It’s part of our conduct.”

 

“A “fuck no” does not need an explanation.”

 

(Y/n) cocks her head to the side and crosses her arms “Tass.”

 

“I’m sorry but have you -seen- much less -heard- this man?" Tass violently raises his arms up to point in the direction of the man - who by the way is still ranting and raving.

 

“That’s no excuse for depriving him decent customer service.” She looks over to the other twin. “Rensa, you agree with me right?”

 

Rensa shakes his head as he sucks in a breath through his gritted teeth. “I’m going to have to agree with Tass on this.” He rubs the back of his neck and mutters under his breath. “And here I thought -I-was crazy…”

 

“Oh my Hylia you guys are pathetic, here I’m going to go talk to him. I’m sure he’s not that bad. Maybe crazy, but nothing we haven’t dealt with.”

 

(Y/n) takes a step towards the man only for Tass’s arm to come straight out in front of her and push her back. “I’m not letting you get close to him.”

 

(Y/n) rolls her eyes. “Excuse me sir?”

 

Everyone there stopped and spun their heads around to face (y/n) along with the man she wanted the attention of. Tass quickly shoves his hands in his pockets and makes a little “eep” sound as all of the previous attention is push towards them.

 

“Has someone checked you in yet?” (Y/n) walks over to him.

 

“Ah no sorry, I actually wasn’t planning on staying over night. I’m just here to look at the sky.” The man’s expression changed drastically to a happy grin from his previous look of mania.

 

“Really? So you’re an astrologer?”

 

“Well… more like an observer of the moon. This location actually has a nice view of the moon when it’s at it’s highest point in the sky.”

 

“Really?…Then why are you here in the morning?”

 

“Well isn’t it obvious? I’m here to warn everyone about their impending doom!”

 

(Y/n)’s eyes widen as her mouth drops open in disbelief. She turns to look at the older twins to see that Rensa is giving her a “I told you so” look while Tass had his face covered in anguish.

 

“Um well, maybe you could perhaps discuss these things outside…outside and…um…very far away from here. Um..there’s the bridge by Kakariko Village that has an even better view of the sky! I don’t know much about astrology or sky stuff, but maybe that might help you.”

 

“My word, that’s a great idea!”

 

“Holy shit I was just making that- I mean yeah yeah sure no problem! If you need anything else I’m (y/n).”

 

“Nice to be acquainted with you.I’m Hino by the way. Feel free to come talk to me anytime about the moon.”

 

(Y/n) nods awkwardly and begins to take a step back, but not before Hino takes a step closer to her. He squints as he peers more into her eyes and she feels herself sweat from the pressure.

 

“Um sir? C-Could you stop staring at me?”

 

“Hm…fascinating…your eyes speak of years before your times…I wonder…have -you- seen a blood moon before?”

 

“A blood what?“

 

“Alright pal, I hope you don’t mind but I’m gonna be needing my stable hand soon.” Tass places a firm hand over her shoulder and pulls her over to him.

 

Hino clears his throat. “Yes yes of course. I’ll be seeing you all again.” With that, he leaves the inn part of the stables and goes to the bridge.

 

Tass waits for the man to leave the sights of everyone before turning (y/n) around to face him. His hands are holding on to her shoulders tightly and he studies her face. “Are you okay?”

 

“I…I think so…”

 

“Good, cause those horses are gonna feed themselves.”

 

***

 

(Y/n) lays on her back in the soft bed of grass and groans. It was sundown by the time all the chores and upkeeps were finished. Guess this is what she gets to slacking on them for the past couple of days. She looks up at the golden colored sky painted with hues of red and orange that blend perfectly together. It reminded her of this one painter that travelled past here a while back on his way to Kakariko Village, the place where he was born and raised. He told her about how he wanted to go back due to an artist’s block along with the desire to pay respects to his hometown. He might’ve also mentioned some story about a great fairy living by there too, but that might’ve just been a mishearing of things.

 

“I wonder how he’s doing?” She thought to herself as she closes her eyes.

 

She took a second to reminisce about the one time he was up late by the fire and viciously throwing colors on his canvas and smoothing them other with his brush. She sat by him and ask what he was painting. He showed her a painting he was working on of the dueling peaks at night and in the center of the two peaks was a bright shimmering full moon.

 

The artist was so passionate about his work, like how Hino was passionate about the moon. Specifically the “Blood moon”.

 

_“I wonder…have -you- seen a blood moon before?”_

 

She wish she could answer that for him cause honestly she doesn’t know either. Could something like that even exists?

 

She opens her eyes, and although she was still laying on grass there was a clear blue sky instead of the warm colored one now. Her eyes look around frantically in attempt to piece together the change.

 

“How was work today (y/n)?”

 

(Y/n) gasp and recognized the smooth echoey voice immediately and turns to her right side. “Thea!”

 

The figure laughs softly and brushes some of (y/n)’s (h/c) hair behind her ear. “You okay? Something seems to be bothering you.”

 

“Um well…actually yes.”

 

“Go on.”

 

(Y/n) looks back at the cloudless sky. “We had a man visit us today. He kept saying all these crazy things, but one thing kinda stuck with me. He kept going on about some sort of blood moon and then when he looked at me…he said something about -me- seeing one before.”

 

Thea remains silent.

 

“Thea…does a blood moon even exist?”

 

“…It does. The last sighting of one was a hundred years ago back when I was alive.” Thea closes her eyes and turns a deep indigo. “It was an omen of the rising Calamity. It took the form of a moon that reflected a bright crimson light onto Hyrule along with cursing the sky with its shade of red. Just one look at it alone could send your mind into a frenzy. All you felt while looking at it is panic. All you could think of is death, and all you can image is blood. Fear…fear isn’t even close enough of a word to describe how terrible it makes you feel.”

 

“…You saw it didn’t you?”

 

Thea sullenly nods she lifts her hand up over (y/n)’s forehead, but hesitates to lay her hand on it, leaving it hovering above.

 

“Go ahead Thea it’s okay. Let me remember it.”

 

Thea looks at her to double check her consent before pressing two fingertips on (y/n). (Y/n) takes in a sharp breath and closes her eyes.

 

***

 

_Thea walked out back by the castle stables with the wooden bucket in her hand. She approaches a hand pump and sets the bucket to the side in order to use both her hands on the pump. She gives it a few pumps yet no water comes out. She tries again. Still nothing._

 

_“Come on, work with me,” She grumbles before finally a burst of water comes out. With a smiles she takes the bucket and puts it underneath it. She goes down on the pump and water flows into the bucket. She fills it up to the brim before stopping and then lifting it up with two hands._

 

_As she walks by the stable she hears the horses stomping and crying out. She stops dead in her tracks and peeks in through the crack of the heavy doors to see all the horses behaving this way - along with some banging against their gates to get out._

 

_“What the…why are they so…agitated.” Thea leans in to see more and notices how the floorboards are reflecting off an eerie red. Thea turns her eyes and feels her heart stop as the source of the red light is seen. Up high in the sky was the moon, not only that but instead of it’s calming silver reflection was absent and was replaced with the color of blood._

 

_A loud sloshing sound is made as she drops the bucket on the ground and unties the leather tie around her hair in order for her to curl her fingers into her strands of ivory hair and tug violently on it. She stares down at the ground as everything around her began to look like shades of crimson. The moon was red. The sky was red. The clouds were red. The ground was red. Everything was red. Everything was red. Everything was red!_

 

_She wanted to scream, her heart was racing like crazy. She felt like she couldn’t breath. It was a sensation of being too high in the air and at the same time being submerge in a bottomless lake. Her head began to spin and hurt, almost like a sword was cutting her skull in half._

 

_“Dear Hylia…dear Hylia! Hylia! Hylia!! HYLIA!!!”_

 

_Rough hands grab a hold of her wrists and pulls them away from her hair._

 

_“Gah! No! LET GO OF ME!” Her voice raw and hoarse._

 

_The person yanks her towards them and wraps their arms around her tightly. The suffocating sensation grows more and she begins to cough and dry heave._

 

_“Sh Sh Sh it’s okay it’s okay I’m here.”_

 

_A hand reaches up and presses her head to their chest and she takes in a smell of grass stains and sweat. Further more, the steady heart beat from the individual slowly reduces her state of hysteria to just pants and heavy breathing._

 

_“You’re okay. You’re okay.”_

 

_She reaches her hand up and clings onto the person’s tunic tightly for comfort she turns her head to try to look up at the moon._

 

_“Link, what was-“_

 

_Link uses his hand and pushes her head away from the sight of it. “Don’t look at it. Please,” his voice becoming desperate as he utters out the last word from his mouth._

 

_Thea nods and agrees with his request, closing her eyes and letting the smell of him and the steady beat of his heart carry her back down to a calm state._

 

***

 

(Y/n) opens her eyes and sits up straight away while gasping for breath. This time she didn’t wake up with a headache, but she defiantly feels like she just got out of the water right before she was about to drown to death. At this point she feels like the latter would be easier to explain then whatever nightmare of a memory she just woke up from.

 

She gets up despite the fact that her legs feel like egg pudding. If anything she should get to bed, with it being night and all.

 

And here she thought she would have a nice time watching the sunset.

 

She drags herself back to the entrance of the stable. She hears the fire crackling behind her.

 

“That’s odd, usually we would have the fire out by now,” she turns her head slowly around behind her to see a sight that causes all color to leave her skin and her body loose all sense of stability.

 

“You’re still awake?” The young Hylian cocks his head to the side in question, the gesture causing his navy blue hood to fall down and reveal his tied back golden locks and long pointy ears.

 

“I-just-I-and you-and-uh-uh-n-nevermind! Wh-What are you doing up??”

 

He shrugs. “I got hungry.”

 

(Y/n) stares down at the pot to see pieces of meat and chopped up carrots simmering slowly.

 

“Th-That’s besides the point! I-It’s looks like you’re making a m-meal f-for t-ten!”

 

“I said I was hungry. If you want to you could join me.”

 

“J-Join you?!- okay but you’re gonna n-need some bowls.” (Y/n) uses this as an excuse to hurry into her room as fast as possible, take a hold of her pillow, and scream into it as loud as she could before throwing it back down on the bed. First the crazy moon man, then a memory with probably the more intimate moments between Link and her previous incarnation, and now the man himself is just casually cooking stew at eleven at night like everyone does this. She throws her head into her hands.

 

“Dear Hylia, pull yourself together.” She groans to herself. She takes a second to calm down and collect herself before exiting her room and returning to where he is, picking up two small wooden bowls and spoons up on the way.

 

She sits down besides him and gives him a bowl and spoon. He nods her in thanks and starts to scoop up some stew from the pot. She goes ahead and takes a small amount of it into her bowl.

 

Violet, who was laying on the ground asleep, lifts her tired head up and sniffs the air. She opens her eyes and hurries over to the two and begins to beg from (y/n).

 

“Violet, no, you can't have any.” Violet whimpers and gives (y/n) sad golden eyes.

 

“I’m sure she’ll be fine if we share.” Link takes out a piece of meat from his bowl. Link makes a little kissy sound to get Violet’s attention. She goes over to him and happy takes it from his hand. He smiles and pets her head and scratches behind her ear. “So, her name is Violet?”

 

“Yeah, I found her when she was a pup and named her.” (Y/n) puts a spoonful of stew in her mouth. “I was fond of violets back when I was a kid so I named her after that.”

 

“Have you seen a violet before?”

 

(Y/n) shakes her head. “No they’re rare since they grow not only in the Gerudo region but also in high to reach places. I would love to see one someday though with my own eyes.”

 

_“You know Link, I want to see a swift violet someday, even if it is just once.”_

 

Link shakes his head and furrows his brows, (y/n) taking notice of his behavior. “You okay?”

 

“Huh? Yeah, yeah I’m fine I just…what you said reminded me of a friend I had back when I was a kid.”

 

“Is that so?” (Y/n) unintentionally leans in closer to him in curiosity while also taking another bite of stew.

 

“Yeah…I think…I think her name was Thea.”

 

The stew that was in (y/n)’s mouth goes flying out and she begins to cough. Link eyes widen and his eyebrows raise up.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine.” (Y/n) speaks between coughs. “It’s just that I…I know someone whose name is also Thea.”

 

“R-Really?”

 

“Yeah w-we’re friends - actually no more like acquaintances - we don’t talk anymore - actually no we do just not physically - we kinda communicate telepathically - ah no wrong word like - like - uh - letters! Letters yes! But I don’t know where she is - well I do but that information is from so long ago - a-anyways what I’m trying to say is that I um know someone with the same name as her.”

 

Link stares at her blankly. “…Cool.” He averts his gaze back to Violet and proceeds to pet her again. “I doubt that you and I knew the same Thea…”

 

“I-I mean anything is possible. It’s a small world after all.”

 

“What are you trying to-“

 

The loud howling coming from Violet cuts off Link’s words as she begins to growl, bark, and howl at the sky. In fact the goats were also starting to go crazy along with the Cuccos.

 

“Oh no” was the last thing that went through (y/n)’s head before she stood up her eyes caught sight of the cursed, blinding red moon.

 

“There it is! There it is! It’s red! Red I tell you! The end is near! The monsters will arise! Arise I say!” Hino kept crying over and over as he ran in circles. The clouds and sky were changing into the same color as the moon rapidly.

 

Once again fear clouded (y/n)’s head and she felt everything like in Thea’s memory all over again. Only this time the suffocating sensation was ten times worse. Her vision was becoming more and more fuzzy.Her legs gave up but not before someone caught her before she could hit the ground.

 

Link had his arms around her tightly and similar to the memory he has her turn her head so it is pressed against his chest.

 

“Don’t look at it. Please,” Link speaks out loud. (Y/n) instantly detects the same desperation now as there was a hundred years ago along with the same steady heart beat. She closes her eyes and holds onto his tunic just like in the memory while listening to his heart beat.

 

Just as quickly as it took for the sky and moon to turn red it was also quick to revert back to how it was a few moments ago, although the animals and people are still recovering from their reactions to it.

 

And just as the moon turns back to its natural silvery glow, Link is quick to push her away from him. He looks at her with a face of shock and bewilderment.

 

“Link?”

 

“I-I…I need to fix something.”

 

“Link-“

 

In a flash Link packs everything up and gets on top of Epona.

 

“Link-“

 

“I’ll be back, just please, stay safe.”

 

“Link! Wait!”

 

And just like that he was gone from her sight, with her head far from being clear and her heart far from being calm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys again for all the love and support!
> 
> Also I am so sorry this chapter took so long to finish. Everytime I had time to write my body just wanted to sleep instead. I try to update next chapter sooner since I'm planning for it to be shorter than this one.


	18. Epona's Song

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright fellas the follow-up chapter y'all been waiting for: Link screaming internally for five hours straight

Link’s mind was whirling in tangled thoughts as he kept urging Epona to run faster and faster. He didn’t know where to exactly, but ones thing for certain: he had to get away.

 

He had to get away from her.

 

It’s not like he hates her, she’s actually a really nice girl, but that’s what made Link want to get away from her more.

 

She confused him. Every time he saw her he felt… something.

 

But what exactly he couldn’t put his fingers on. It was as if he’s met her before - he’s seen it in her eyes. (E/c) eyes with rays of highlights that shined in them and gave a sense of light even when the sky was cloudy. But they also spoke of pain and anguish from a distant past that is still beyond his reach. He barely knows her. This was like what - the third time he actually seen her face to face? And yet... she felt like an old friend. The kind of friend you enjoy having in company even if it’s complete silence between you two. The kind of friend that understands your struggles without having to explain to them. The friend that you have a bond with that takes years - maybe even a whole lifetime - for it to blossom fully and when it does blossom nothing could come between you two.

 

That’s the sensation he gets while being with her. And to be honest... it terrifies him.

 

The blood moon was the final wave strong enough to break an invisible dam in his mind he had no idea he had. Link couldn’t describe in any other way other than intense. All he remembers is the sudden urge to protect - specifically her. Like a greedy man holding onto his rupees, that’s how Link felt towards her. Why he has no idea.

 

Then there was Thea, a woman from his past. He can’t remember anything about her other than their childhood together. What happened to her? The only “adult” version he’s seen of her was in the memory in which she made a bridle and saddle for Epona, so obviously they must’ve been close.

 

But after that, there’s nothing. It’s almost as if she vanished. She talked about knowing a Thea, but surely it must be a coincidence. Surely they must be thinking about two different people. After all it’s been a hundred years. Hylians could live to be a little bit over one hundred, but even then where was he going to find her? What would he even say to her? Would she even remember him?

 

Why does he even care in the first place? He has to worry about Hyrule. The blood moon was a sign that Zelda can’t hold him down forever. He has to free the Divine Beasts as soon as possible.

 

Link buried his face in Epona’s snow white mane and closed his eyes, listening to her hooves hitting the dirt road rhythmically to calm him down while thoughts of Princess Zelda ran through his head. How little he knows about her, and yet Impa and Purah talk about how much she meant to him. Heck, Mipha even mentioned them. Link only took a peak at the diary the King offered for him to read and already based on the few pages he’s read he could only assume that the one Mipha was telling him to confess his feelings to was Zelda. She was the only possible candidate. He turned down Mipha, and there seems to be no other girls, or guys, in his life that mattered right before the Calamity. Still-

 

Epona came to a screeching holt and reared back, almost knocking Link to the ground if it wasn’t for his quick reflexes taking hold of the reins and holding on for dear life.

 

“Woah woah woah! Easy girl easy.”

 

Link kept hushing and soothing her by petting her mane until she lowers her front legs back onto the ground.

 

“There ya go that’s it.” Link continues to stroke her mane and begins to hum. As he hums there is music that he hears in the distance going along with the tune he is humming. Was it an accordion playing? Link lifts his head up in question and hits her side gently to urge her to move forward. As they reach turn the corner, Link can see the source of the sound. It was coming from a familiar stable structure in the distance. On top of that, it seems like it is daytime now, which surprised Link since he senses no sort of fatigue despite being on the run since last night. He heads down to the stable and hops off of Epona. He lowers his navy blue hood and shakes his head, letting his hair taste the warm air around him.

 

“Howdy stranger, are ya headed to Death Mountain?”

 

Link looks over his shoulder to see a young woman in the usually stable hand outfits, this time the jacket is a maroon color, chestnut colored short hair, piercing blue eyes, and dark plum colored lipstick on her plump lips. He’s ashamed to admit that the sight of her caused him to blush as he clears his throat and faces her.

 

“Y-Yeah, why?”

 

The woman chuckles, “it gets awfully hot up there. I’m sure you’re feeling it right now as we speak.”

 

Link shakes his head immediately after she says that. “No, that’s not true.”

 

Once again she laughs with her deep sultry voice. “Here let me give you this on the house.” She hands him a small bottle filled with a black, bubbling liquid. “This will help you on the way up. We wouldn’t want you to catching yourself on fire or anything.”

 

“Th-Thanks.”

 

“I’m Gaile by the way. If you need anymore of those elixirs you can come talk to me. I’m sure I can give you a discount.” Gaile winks after saying the last sentence.

 

“N-No thanks I think I’m good.”

 

“Alright but don’t say I didn’t warn you~” Gaile gives a little smirk before going back to work.

 

Link puts away the bottle and tries to calm down his blush that was forming on his cheek. Hylia, what is with everyone and flirting with him?

 

The music coming from the accordion distracts him from his thoughts.

Link finds the source coming from a giant, turquoise-feathered bird, who was looking wistfully in the distance as he plays the song from heart. Link clears his throat to get the person’s attention.

 

“Ah, I am sorry. I did not see you there. Let me introduce myself. I’m Kass. I’m a bard from Rito Village who seeks to learn all the ancient songs from long ago.”

 

“Is the song you were just playing one of those songs?”

 

“Uuuhh,” Kass looks down at his accordion, “I am honestly not sure. My teacher taught me this song, but he didn’t say whether it was an ancient song or not. Along with that, he sadly passed away before giving me the exact name of the song. Still it is a piece of music I enjoy. Oh, forgive me I got carried away - uh, sir? Are you okay?”

 

***

 

_“Epona! Epona!!” Link had his hands cupped around his mouth as he called out for her. “Epona!!!”_

 

_“Will you quit being so loud?”_

 

_Link spins his body around to see his beloved friend, whose once irritated look turns quickly into an expression of shock._

 

_“Thea!”_

 

_“What are you doing here? I thought you had training today. What are you doing so far away from the castle?”_

 

_“I could ask you the same thing.”_

 

_Thea lifts the flap of the satchel that is resting up against her hip to reveal a few prickly orange plants. “Lenus needs for thistle so I’m here collecting some. What’s your excuse?”_

 

_“It’s actually my day off. I thought it would be nice to help some people out while I have the time.”_

 

_Thea sighs and shakes her head. “You never can sit still can you?”_

 

_“Guess not.”_

 

_“Alright Link, what did you get yourself into now?”_

 

_“A filly got out at the nearby ranch. I’m trying to find her and get her back.”_

 

_“Is that why you’ve been yelling for five minutes straight?”_

 

_“I-“ Link looks down in defeat, “yeah.”_

 

_“Did you consider that she isn’t here?”_

 

_“The girl at the ranch said that this is usually where Epona goes whenever she runs away.”_

 

_“How about a different way of calling her.”_

 

_“Well…” Link’s voice trails off, “actually there is another way.’_

 

_Thea raises an eyebrow. “Oh?”_

 

_“Yeah but,” a small blush appears across Link’s cheeks, “it’s out of the question.”_

 

_“Why?’_

 

_“Cause it involves singing.”_

 

_“So? Singing is not that bad. You shouldn’t be embarrassed about it.”_

 

_“Easy for you to say, you sing all the time.”_

 

_Thea starts to blush as well and stiffens up in defense. “N-No I don’t.”_

 

_“Yeah you do. I always see you sneaking out to the castle gardens so you can sing.”_

 

_“You what?!-“ Thea cuts herself off and takes a deep breath in and holds it in before letting it out at a fast rate. “Y-You must be seeing things…”_

 

_Link brushes off her embarrassment as his eyes suddenly light up. “Hey I got an idea. How about you sing the tune for me?”_

 

_“What?! No!”_

 

_“Why? You’ll do great!”_

 

_“I-I can’t sing!”_

 

_“But you can Thea,” Link’s rosy blush becomes more prominent, “I haven’t really mentioned it before because I knew you would beat me up about it, but I have over heard you many times singing to yourself and…I-I really like it. Besides… you just said that I shouldn’t be embarrassed about it, so wouldn’t it be hypocritical of you to feel embarrassed about your voice?”_

 

_Thea sighs and takes a moment to collect her composure, “I just…-if- I ever sang in front of someone, eavesdropping doesn’t count by the way,” she shoots a look towards Link that causes him to gulp before her features soften up again, “I want it to be important…I want it to be a special moment… I can’t really give you an explanation on why I feel that way now…but maybe someday I will.” She shakes her head and crakes a small, delicate smile. “I’ll make an exception this time. Now, how does this song go?”_

 

_Link leans in and hums the melody softly in her ear. Thea listens intently before clearing her throat and repeating the melody out loud, singing it by using the neutral syllable “oo”. She continues repeating the melody over and over again before they both hear a far off neighing along with the sound of hooves that keeps getting louder and louder._

 

_“Thea, you did- woah!” The young filly while running full speed head butts Link in the gut causing him to fall down on his back. Thea can’t help but let a laugh slip out of her lips as Link sits up while rubbing the back of his head. “Well, that’s her alright.”_

 

_“You said her name was Epona?”_

 

_Link sits up and brushes the dirt off of him. “Yeah.”_

 

_“Come on, let’s go take her back.”_

 

_Link agrees as they walk out of Faron woods with Epona walking close behind him and Thea walking besides him._

 

_“Y’know Link, I think she likes you.”_

 

_Link’s eyes raise up. “Really?”_

 

_“Mhm.”_

 

_He smiles shyly. “I think she likes you too. Also, didn’t you have to collect thistle?”_

 

_“It can wait. I collect enough to last a few weeks at least. Let’s just worry about Epona right now.” Thea continues to hum the melody Link just taught her as she strokes Epona’s snout with care. “I honestly quite enjoy that tune, I just wish I knew what the name was.”_

 

_Link looks down in thought. “The girl who taught me the song back at the ranch said something about a name. I think it was called-“_

 

_***_

 

“Hello? Hello?”

 

“Huh? What?” Damn, he was in another memory again.

 

“Are you alright there? You spaced out for a second.”

 

“Yeah, don’t worry about me.” Link takes a second to untie his ponytail to comb his hair. “Anyways, what were you saying?”

 

“Oh, I was just mentioning the fact that I don’t know the name for the song I was just playing.”

 

“It’s Epona’s song.”

 

“Huh? What?”

 

Link’s fingers freeze midway through combing his hair. “What?”

 

“You said it was called Epona’s song.”

 

“U-Uh yeah I-I just thought it was a name that fits it. Epona is the name of my horse so y-y’know.”

 

Kass hesitates a bit before smiling. “Right, it does suit the tune quite nicely. Thank you for giving me a name for it uh…”

 

“It’s Link.”

 

Kass’s eyes widen ever so slightly before resuming the calm composure. “Link, thank you.”

 

Kass puts away his accordion and stretches his wings. “Well Link, I would love to stay, but I have a family I need to check on.”

 

“Of course. I hope to see you around Kass.”

 

“Trust me,” Kass spreads his wings out, “I know we will see each other around.” And with that, Kass flies up into the air. Link watches his feathered bird fly away until he was nothing more than just a speck in the sky.

 

Link sighs and slumps down by the fire, not even bothering to put his hair back up much less finish combing it. For the rest of the night Link continues to stare at the fire. He thought he had it all figured out. But then he had to remember another part of his childhood. He had to remember her again. Her clear, youthful, gentle voice was plaguing his mind.

 

To be honest, he was getting sick of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Insert message about how thankful I am to have such awesome readers and commenter etc etc etc*
> 
> Also, since this chapter is about music, I thought it would be a good time to bring this up
> 
> Back in chapter 10 I had some lyrics written down that Thea was singing 
> 
> (if you don't remember what exactly they are then here they are:  
> “The goddesses have made you and I  
> so don’t cry I will come back  
> Like how flowers rise from a distant past  
> and if the goddesses have wanted it  
> Then I will see you again  
> Because to you I am your light  
> and to me you are my night” )
> 
> Now it's really weird to read lyrics without knowing at least the instrumental part of the song to go off of (especially since these are original lyrics that I wrote so there's nothing on youtube I can show off to you guys to give you a reference.) So hopefully in the near future I will be able to show off you guys an instrumental version of the song (that is, if you guys want it).
> 
> But what has been bothering me more is whether or not I should actually have a VOCAL version of it for you guys (because the vocals would prob be me and I'm not so confident in my singing abilities)
> 
> Idk just a thought out in the air for you guys on whether or not you will be alright with just the instruments or if you want me to do vocals as well (there is a valid reason why I care so much for a silly song okay!? >____<)
> 
> Let's also toss in the idea that I have concept art of Thea (which I'm afraid of sharing cause 1. rip art skills and 2. I don't want to take away too much of your guys' imagination) So let me know if you guys want to see that as well.
> 
> If you've read this message till the end I salute you and once again thank you for keeping up to date with my fic and being supportive of me


	19. The Mind is Dangerous

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof this chapter is kinda short compared to the last two sorry about that been busy with school and moving. BUT I'm out of school now and we are just about finished with moving so chapters -should- be coming out quicker (that is if laziness and lack of motivation doesn't kick me in the nads)

_“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”_

 

_She looks down at her hands that were clasped together and shaking. “I-I was scared.”_

 

_He gives her a warm smile before snaking his arms around her waist. She yelps in protest which makes him chuckle. “You had no reason to be scared.”_

 

_“I-I know that now. I-I just-“_

 

_“Sh” He places his index finger against her soft lips as the other hand pulls her closer. “Don’t speak.”_

 

_Her lips begin to quiver as her fingers found their way to lace into the fabric of his tunic. She unconsciously moves her head closer to him enough to feel his breath against her cheek._

 

_“That’s it.” He croons as his index finger wraps around the tip of her chin and tilts it up so he can gaze into her eyes. “Goddesses you’re beautiful.”_

 

_“I-I really l-like you.” She blurts out blindly out of the heat of the situation._

 

_“I know, so do I.” He leans in more, their lips centimeters away from each other. His hand that was around her waist begins to migrate lower and she shivers, each movement causing heat to radiate from her body. He goes in and-_

 

**Hey the floors aren’t gonna sweep themselves**

 

(Y/n) eyes open up widely at she realizes she began dozing off on the side of the stable’s entrance with the broom still firmly in her hands. This was embarrassing.

 

“Hey! Did you hear me?”

 

“Y-Yeah yeah I did Tass, sorry I couldn’t sleep last night.” She laughs it off even though it was a lie. She slept very well last night - especially considering in her dream she and Link were-

 

She blushes profusely and almost shrieks out loud at the places her mind was going to and begins to sweep viciously to distract herself of the sinful thoughts. Her strokes where wild and to the point in which she began to accidently sweep the dust back into her face, with even some of the dirt getting in her mouth and causing her to cough and wheeze.

 

“Woah woah woah honey. I know I want you to sweep and all but try not to create a dust storm.”

 

“I-I-I know that! I just- I’m going to get some water!” She clumsily walks away from the stable and towards the small area of water that surrounds the now blue glowing shrine. She sets the broom to the sit and kneels down taking a moment to splash the cool water onto her skin, hoping in vain that it will calm down the heated blush across her cheeks.

 

Why in Hylia’s name was she so flustered all of a sudden. Ever since that stupid Blood Moon and that incident between her and Link her emotions towards him have heighten up and in more ways than one. She scoops up some more cold water right before splashing it on her face as she kept on getting lost in her thoughts. It wasn’t like they didn’t have moments before all of this. There was the time after their goat rescue mission in which Link tried to clean blood off of her. There was also that time in which she passed out and he carried her, and then right after waking up from that she decides to sleep besides him on the floor. But those were all back when she knew so little about him, his past, his destiny, and especially the fact that back then she had no idea how much she tied into his life. How important she was to him. It only had to take another omen of their impending doom for her to realize how naive she was back then about her situation.

 

(Y/n) groans and buries her face in her lap. Why couldn’t she just meet some typical traveler and fall in love with that guy. Why did it have to be a hundred year old guy who just so happens to still look her age due to magic spooky woo woo stuff? Why did it have to be a guy who lost all his memory and is still trying to pick it up little by little? Why did it have to be a guy her past self was in love with also? Why did it have to be a legendary hero who was their last wall of defense before the world as they knew it came to an end?

 

Alright maybe it was time to stop thinking before she freaks out over things she can’t control - such as the world ending.

 

She takes a deep breath in and lets it out slowly before using her shirt to dry her face up from the water. She looks down at the shrines reflection in the water that is glowing a hypnotizing shade of blue. This was definitely Link’s doing, although she wished she was able to witness what exactly he did in order to change it from orange to blue. Guess some things are better left unsolved.

 

“Hylia if you can hear me please make sure he’s doing okay,” she silently prays as she closes her eyes, “just make sure he is safe and not doing anything stupid.”

 

***

 

Link was diving head first into Death Mountain in order to board Rudania as Yunobo looked from the top while pulling tightly on his piece of Champion’s gear, praying over and over that Link will be okay.

 

Link quickly whips out his paraglider a few feet away from Rudania in order to land safely. As he lands gently with his feet skidding against the rough surface he notices how Rudania also has a place to set his Sheikah slate down similar to what Vah Ruta had. He walks over and places the slate down, the platform turning a bright blue along with an intricate design in the middle of the platform. After that action he hears a booming echoing voice and knew right away who it was.

 

“Hey, little guy! Long time no see!”

 

Link can’t help but crack a slight smile as the jolly Goron explains what he needs to do.

 

Link goes in and begins to make his way around, activating all the terminals just like how he did it with Ruta. The puzzle and beast wasn’t hard, but what was proving difficult was finding a way to calm his rampant thoughts.

 

Every time he solved something or activated a terminal a nagging voice spoke to him. “You’re no hero” it kept saying. It was as if his own head wanted to bring him down. He was getting tired of it as he activates the last terminal before he needs to go to the main terminal.

 

_You’re no hero._

 

“Be quiet.” He grunts under his breath as he puts his Sheikah Slate back on his hip and adjusts his flame proof helmet so he could see better with it on.

 

All the terminals were activated, if it were to go similar to how Vah Ruta was, the Blight should show up right as he’s about to activate the main terminal. That’s where the real battle was.

 

 

***

 

“Little guy watch out!”

 

Link looks over his shoulder as Fireblight Ganon begins to inhale the hot air into its lungs in an attempt to exhale out the air in the form of fire balls. Link curses under his breath as he dodges the incoming fire balls.

 

“There has to be a way to attack it without getting too close…” Daruk’s ghostly voice speaks in Link’s ear. Link nods understanding the advice of his late friend and pulls out the Slate. He switches it to the bomb rune and watches as ribbons of blue material wrap around each other to form a circular bomb with a handle on the top. Link takes a hold of the handle and chucks it at the Blight as it begins to inhale. Right as the bomb hits its face Link pushes the button on the side of his Slate, causing it to explode and the Blight to sheik as it fell to the ground. Link hurries over as fast has he can, the heavy fire proof gear slowing him down in the process.

 

“I won’t be able to get over to it in time at this rate,” he thinks as his fire proof boots before harder and harder to lift off the ground. Link settles plan B and pulls out his arrow along with a bundle of arrows. He begins to repetitively hit it in the eye with an arrow over and over. It sheiks get louder and louder the more abuse its eye gets from Link’s countless arrows.

 

“One more shot won’t be enough damage to finish him off,” Link monologues to himself before taking out his knight’s sword, “man, and I liked this sword too.” With all his might, Link throws the sword and it perfectly shatters against the creature’s eyes, bits of metal digging deeply into its eye socket along with its malice-covered skin. It wailed and squirmed at the pain as the malice made body begins to unravel right before a bright pink light from inside its body seeps out and the monster combusts from within.

 

Link pants out in relief and throws his hands up in the air, taking a moment to take it all in and celebrate this mini accomplishment. After coming down from his high, Link walks over to the main terminal and places his Slate on the platform, the big, orange, bulb-like part turning blue.

 

“Great work Little Guy!”

 

Link turns around to see the spirit of his fellow Champion standing before him with his arms open wide in joy. Link couldn’t help but let a smile come across his face at seeing his old friend, even though the fire proof helmet was covering up that part of his face.

 

“I owe you big for this. Because of you, my spirit is finally free, can’t thank you enough.”

 

Link remains quiet and lets his friend speak.

 

“I feel like I should apologize. I was doing all I could to protect Hyrule when that thing got the best of me. Sorry that me resting with the rubble caused such a mess.

 

_You’re no hero._

 

Link bites his lip again. There was that thought again. He felt terrible. Daruk shouldn’t blame the entire fall of Hyrule on himself and yet here they are.

 

“It’s not your fault Daruk” was what he wanted to say to him, but all Link could handle doing at that moment was give a simple nod. Despite Daruk bringing the conversation to a brighter note by mentioning the fact that Rudania was under their control, Link’s mind was foggy with a weird sense of failure despite the fact that Fireblight Ganon would still be alive and well if it wasn’t for him.

 

“Oh and Link?”

 

Link forces himself out of his thoughts for a few seconds to hear Daruk.

 

“Give my regards to the princess.” The jolly Goron waves goodbye as the divine light lifts Link up in the air, similar to what happened in Vah Ruta.

 

“Thank you Daruk.”

 

Daruk smiles sincerely, sensing a sadness in Link’s voice. “I should be thanking you, brother.”

 

Those where the last words Link heard from him before the divine light carried him away.

 

***

 

It was evening by the time Yunobo and Link returned to Goron City. News of the Scourge of Vah Rudania already made its rounds and everyone was waiting eagerly to celebrate with the fear of a volcanic explosion coming form Death Montain due to Rudania being a thing of the past.

 

As they all sat around around a long, flat, slab of rock that acted as a table, they all feasted on rock roasts. Link unfortunately could barely take a bite of food as the voice ran wild in his head.

 

_You’re no hero_

 

_You’re no hero_

 

_You’re no hero_

 

The voice wasn’t even angry, it just sounded so…disappointed. And it made Link realize something.

 

Words in the tone of disappointment can cut deeper in the flesh than words of pure rage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright thank you so much again for reading and
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4-MmsLKRDw
> 
> Yep that's right - oh my GOD! WOW!
> 
> Just about a month ago I wrote about how we got 100 kudos on this fic and now we're at about 150. I'm speechless at how much traction this is getting. Honestly when I first started writing this, I was so afraid people were not gonna like it because there are times in which the shipping deviates from just the reader.
> 
> Just thank you guys so much for this. And don't worry, all the people who wanted the song and art - I am working on it (which is another reason why this chapter is kinda short) I want to get at least a little bit of the song done by next chapter, but I'm also bad with deadlines so bare with me.
> 
> Anyways thank you so much see ya next time I love you all that jazz <3 Bye!


	20. If It Was You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: Oh yeah of course I'm gonna update soon!
> 
> Also me: ends up going MIA for two weeks
> 
> Okay okay but to be fair during that time I did finish up the song and some drawings *blows a defected party horn*
> 
> BBBUUUUTTTT (huge but)
> 
> The song is just the bare bones (aka just the melody/vocal line for now). And for some dumb reason Archive won't let me embed the mp3 version on the song from tumblr, so I guess you're just gonna have to hop on over to my tumblr page to listen to it (which btw I've had for like 3 years now but never used it until now) (Link to tumblr page: https://melodic-gamer.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Drawings I will show you, but I am apologizing in advance because none of them are colored they are all sketches and still black and white.
> 
> I'm sorry if the things I am showing you are not extremely detailed art/bare bones of a song, but I am hoping that this will make me less shy about showing off my works and hopefully will help me improve with those two things.
> 
> Like I'm telling you in advance the art is so messy and ugly (I tried I swear T-T)
> 
> Seriously I'm warning you.
> 
>  
> 
> Now that that's out of the way let's talk about something else.
> 
> So back in chapter 11 (The Truth I Couldn't Tell) I mentioned how the title was inspired by the song "The Untold Truth" by BTS. 
> 
> Well this chapter's title is inspired by the song "If It Is You" originally sung by Jung Seung Hwan. Rosé from Blackpink did a cover of it for Masked Singer.
> 
> Another chapter title inspired by a kpop song...yep you know what that means.
> 
> They're related to one another. Think of it as a prequel-esque/follow-up/piecing things together chapter. 
> 
> While we're at it, I'm just gonna casually add a disclaimer. I know I love kpop with all my heart, but I also know that not everyone likes it. If you don't like it that is fine you do not have to listen to the song I have in the chapter. I just like showing the roots of my inspiration along with giving some context to the reader, but please do not take this as me shoving it down your throat. If you don't like it you don't have to listen to it. You not listening to it will not take anything huge away from the book's experience. I did add other song that I think also goes very well with the feel of this chapter that is in English if people are more comfortable with an English-spoken song, but the same principle applies: I am NOT forcing you to. Listen if you would like - if not, no hard feelings.
> 
> Alright we good? We good. Okay let's go.

 (So here is Rosé's version of "If It Is You")

(Here's the non Kpop song I mentioned in my notes that has the same emotions and is just as tear-jerking. Also Samantha Barks has an amazing voice. This song is titled "On my Own" and is from the musical Les Miserables. Unfortunately the video does cut off some of her last note, but what can you do?)

 

* * *

 

 

“Are you sure you have to go brother? There is still so much left to celebrate.”

 

“I’m sorry, but there are still two Divine Beasts I have to go save.”

 

“We understand, but let’s not have you go empty handed. Here.” The Chief, Bludo, nods and has two Gorons come forward holding a heavy two-handed weapon in their hand. It looked very similar to a cobble crusher except it seemed way heavier and the handle was a bright blue and accented with hunks of copper. “This was the late Champion Daruk’s weapon.”

 

Link bite down his bottom lip while burying guilt and grief as he accepts the massive weapon. His expression immediately changes into a look of shock as the weapon drags him down to the ground causing the chief to laugh heartily.

 

“Sorry brother, I guess the weapon is a -little- bit too heavy for a little Hylian.”

 

“N-No don’t worry about it. I-I can handle it.” Link pants out before taking a picture of the weapon for the Sheikah Slate to register it. It turns into nothing but stringy blue essences and gets sucked into the slate. “It’s safe and sound now.”

 

“I’ll never understand what these kids do these days.” The Boss barks out loud. “Well anyways, how about this?” He hands Link a poorly binded, leather journal. “This was also Daruk’s. You can read this whenever you have time to sit down and rest. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.

 

“Thank you.” Link safely puts it away before exiting the city, but not before hearing all the Gorons cry out their own good byes- a lot of the goodbyes containing the word “brother.”

 

He still couldn’t believe that after everything they still consider him a brother.

 

***

 

Link was in no shape to make the hike all the way back down the hill in order to go to the stable and pick up Epona, so now would probably be a reasonable time to try that ‘fast travel’ thing the slate keeps suggesting him to do. He let his fingers tap gently on the small, blue shrine icon by the location of the Foothill stable. Sucking in a breath, he taps on it cautiously and feels himself being lifted up from off the ground right before the whole world became white.

 

When he came to he was standing just outside of the shrine by the stable. While it wasn’t as painful as he expected it was still very… unsettling. Like he wasn’t completely whole the entire time. While it was fast, it just wasn’t the same as being beside his lovely companion and taking in a deep breath of the fresh air on a chilly night. This experience definitely made him feel more grateful for Epona. He’ll only use this sort of transportation if is really was an emergency.

 

Link quickly changes out of the heavy fireproof armor and back into his preferred attire consisting of his Champion’s tunic, navy blue hood, beige trousers, and brown leather boots before heading down from where the shrine was and towards the stable. He gladly took Epona back into his care, wrapping his arms around her neck and holding her close to him. He eventually pulls back and rests his forehead against her muzzle.

 

“I missed you girl.”

 

Epona closes her eyes as he feels her muscles relax from his touch. He talks a moment to stroke her mane and let their quiet interaction soothe him as well.

 

“Ready to go home?”

 

Epona gives him a soft nicker and Link responds to the gesture by hugging her around her neck again before climbing on top of her and settling down on the saddle. He gives her a gentle nudge and she starts walking down the path heading south of Death Mountain. Link had faith in Epona’s navigational instincts so he left her alone and decided to take out the journal the Chief of the Gorons recently gave him about Daruk. He was hesitant at first, afraid of what he might learn, but at the same time he felt like this could help him remember something - _anything._

 

He delicately opens up the century year old journal and flips through the thin pages. Unlike Mipha’s diary which consisted of neat, curvy line and accents to each letter, Daruk’s handwriting looked as if someone dared him to write all his entries in under a minute due to how sloppy it was. It took effort, but Link finally figured out how to read his writing with ease. A lot of the entries were about food and how he himself was a foodie along with Daruk - which he wouldn’t doubt, he’s already memorized all the recipes he’s come to love since waking up. But…there was an entry that stuck out like a sore thumb.

 

_"I'm a Champion now. Feels good. I hadn't talked with Link in a while, so seeing him at the inauguration ceremony was nice. It was a good day. Oh, word has it Link has been chosen as Zelda's appointed knight. I can't think of a better brother for the job. I hear one of those ancient machine things went nuts during some test and shot out deadly beams! With true Goron spirit, Link grabbed a pot lid from the ground and deflected the blast. He nailed the thing in its weak spot and saved the day. His bravery caught the king's eye, and not long after that, he was appointed to guard Zelda! I'd expect nothin' less from the little guy!"_

 

Was…Was he suppose to remember something?

 

***

(Look guys it's baby girl)

[ ](https://imgur.com/RwDGCq6)

 (Here's her with a few facial expressions (don't ask me why two of them are sad I was just in a mood that day))

[ ](https://imgur.com/cqQmjvQ)

_Thea tightened her grip around the medicine bag strap as she runs down the hallway while pushing andurging people to get out of her way. Her pounding heart along with the clanging sound of glass bottles filled with elixirs hitting against one another._

 

_“Thea slow down! You forget I’m an old man,” Lenus cried from behind her._

 

_Thea shuts her eyes and shakes her head as images and worst case scenarios races through her head._

 

_“I told him! I told him it was a bad idea to go on guard duty today by the testing area! But did he believe me? Of course not!” She clamored out in her head. News was that a guardian went nuts during testing. How many people did it hit? Did it go through them? Did it go through -him-? The thought of a gaping whole in his stomach oozing with blood from one of their deadly beams is enough to make her wish to vomit._

 

_“Oh goddesses, oh Hylia! Please please -please- let him be okay!” She prayed over and over in her mind._

 

_When she finally got there is was not even -close- to how gruesome she imagined it would be. There laid a giant guardian on the ground., still sparking around it’s weak area and jittering sporadically. A few Sheikahs have fallen to the ground, but were being helped back up to their feet by other members of their tribe._

 

_And then there was Link, who was standing in front of the dying beast with a pot lid strapped against his left arm and acting as a shield of sorts._

 

_Her heart leapt up into her throat as her feet moved on their own towards him and her arms wrapped around him without a single thought of the consequences. She heard Link try to protest something but she cut him off._

 

_“Oh Hylia thank you! You’re okay! You’re alive! You’re okay! There’s no gross hole in your stomach-“_

 

_“T-Thea, please let go of me. Y-You’re kinda making it hard to breathe.”_

 

_“Huh? Oh, sorry,” Thea lets go of him while letting out a nervous laughter. She feels her cheeks heat up ever so slightly. She clears her throat to try to get her nerves to shut up for just a moment. “A-Anyways are you okay? Did you fall? Or get cut somewhere?”_

 

_“Thea I’m fine.” He places his right hand on her left shoulder and she feels her body heat up more from the simply gesture. Looking up to meet his soft blue eyes was also another blessing to her. The rays of light from the sky highlighting his golden hair, long pointed ears, and smooth porcelain skin - he was perfect. Except at the moment he did have a dirt smudge on his right cheek bone. She swiftly takes out a damp cloth from her bag and starts to wipe it off while they both looked at each other in silence. She’s done this so many times before, but this time around it was different._

 

_Perhaps it was because neither of them were kids, and one harbored feelings for the other._

 

_“I’m looking for the future Hylian Champion.”_

 

_Everyone knew the owner of the roaring, gruff voice and immediately got down on their knee. Thea quickly separated from Link and both of them took a knee as well._

 

_The footsteps hit the dirt like thunder and got closer and closer to the two of them._

 

_“Rise Champion, I would like to speak to you.”_

 

_Link stood up from next to Thea. She took the opportunity to take a peak at who the speaker was, and sure enough it was the king himself._

 

_She looked back down and let their footsteps get farther and farther away from her, with her thunderous heartbeat never leaving her._

 

_***_

 

Nope nothing. Link couldn’t think of anything. The memory must be not that important then.

 

***

 

_Luckily no one else was injured that badly from the incident, but Thea still needed to make her rounds after Link left the scene. A hand covered in heavy metal grabbed onto her shoulder just as she finished speaking with the last scientist that was there._

 

_“It’s been a while little flower.” The last two words were spoken with intended poison._

 

_She feels her body freeze from the touch, and every nerve in her body wanted to run away. But that’s what he wanted from her, and she can’t give him the pleasure of knowing that he makes her squirm._

 

_She turns around to face him with the best, calm composure she could muster. “Hello Captain, it has been a long time. What is it now, four years since you talked to me like this, correct? Though unfortunately for you, I still have my head on my shoulders.”_

 

_“Not for long. I guess you’re too careless to have heeded my last warning.”_

 

_“Not careless, more like…unaffected. I have nothing to fear Captain, I am no bastard. My family was married in Mabe Village, and I was happily accepted by my father after coming into this world. Really now Captain, if you have such a vendetta against me, you should really be more on my neck about my behavior rather than make conclusions and call me out every four years or more.”_

 

_“You think you can get away with this kind of talk just because you’ve been promoted to an assistant to the court’s physician?”_

 

_“Well lets also mentioned how I am also a full time servant on top of all that. Your girl keeps herself busy.”_

 

_The knight’s captain was about to straggle the girl right then and there. How dare she humiliate him in front of all these people? And how dare she have the audacity to even speak with a hint of confidence in her voice._

 

_No. She must be silenced then and there._

 

_He felt his grip tighten on the hilt of his sword but not before a familiar elder grabbed her by the arm._

 

_“I’m sorry to disturb you Captain,” The old physician spoke calmly. “Come Thea, we should head back.”_

 

_“Yes of course Lenus.” She turns and walks back with him but not before hearing the Captain spout out haunting worlds._

 

_“Run and hide all you want you fucking bastard, but I know the truth of your past. Soon everyone will know who you truly are. No flower can hide forever in the wild. Someone will eventually find it, pick it, and leave it out to die.”_

 

_And with that her mask cracked and she let her fear show._

 

_Because the truth is…she knew nothing of where she came from or the nature of her birth._

 

_Her whole life since now could’ve been an elaborate lie._

 

_A lie covering a truth that could change her life for the worst._

 

_***_

 

_“Thea?…Thea what’s wrong?”_

 

_Thea had her right elbow on the table and her head resting against that hand while turning her spoon over and over in her other hand._

 

_“Thea come on what’s wrong? You’ve been picking at your soup for Hylia knows how long.”_

 

_“…Tell me the truth Lenus, who am I?”_

 

_Lenus raises his eyebrows in question and pushes his glasses up._

 

_“You’re Thea.”_

 

_“No I mean…who -am I-?”_

 

_“…A woman?”_

 

_She sighs in frustration, getting tired of beating around the bush. “Who was my mom? My dad? Where did I really come from? Who are you to me? Were they married? Was I loved by my father? Was I born out of wedlock? Am I a-“ She exhales sharply, feeling herself getting more and more wound up. “Am I a bastard?”_

 

_Lenus listens quietly and lets her keep speaking._

 

_“All my life, I’ve been called by that name. At first I thought… maybe they’re just jealous or bad at insulting people. But now I am older and am still being called that. I’m starting to think…there’s truth in their words. And considering I barely know much about my past…perhaps it is the truth.”_

 

_“Thea…you can’t-“_

 

_“What believe people? I’ve believed you all my life. What if you’ve been lying to me too?”_

 

_“Thea-“_

 

_“Well tell me the truth.” She stands up from the small table the two share during dinners. “Am I a child born out of wedlock or not?”_

 

_Without a second to hesitant, Lenus responds. “You should not listen to those people. None of them have ties to the village where you were born, and none of them knew your parents personally.”_

 

_“Still-“_

 

_“While we’re at it why do you suddenly care so much about your place in the world? You have a roof over your head and food on the table. It’s a simple life, but it’s still a good life. Why has class become so important to you? Unless…”_

 

_Lenus’s stare locks in with hers and finally it all clicks in._

 

_“…This is about Link…isn’t it?”_

 

_The fire in the fireplace makes a loud popping sound and Thea retreats to the door._

 

_“Where are you going?”_

 

_“Outside.”_

 

_And with that she leaves the scene._

 

_***_

 

_The castle garden was a forbidden place, but if you were able to sneak in without being caught, it was paradise. Thea became a natural when it came to sneaking in. It was her place to think, to dream, and to love._

 

_Not to mention this was also a place she shared with her mother years ago._

 

_It was their place to think, to dream, and to love._

 

_But her mother is gone now, it’s just her now in this lonesome garden._

 

_Thea laid in the one patch of tall grass available in the garden and stared at the night sky, letting childhood memories consume her as she hummed their song._

 

_She stopped right as she got to the line “so don’t cry I will come back.”_

 

_“You’re never gonna come back…are you?” She mutters out loud._

 

_She was on her own. She knew that fact._

 

_But she had Link. Well, until just recently._

 

_It’ll all started when her heart started to beat faster around him. Four years ago on that cursed day was when the flames ignited towards a doomed fate. From there it just got worse. And day by day she’s beginning to learn just how cursed she is._

 

_She could become a court physician after Lenus retires; that would definitely give her respect and a boost on the social ladder, maybe even give her a sliver of hope of being with Link without the world looking down on them both._

 

_But if she was a bastard…it’s all over. Maybe being born out of wedlock could eventually be forgiven by people, but there were other layers to everything. And if one of the layers involved rejection from her birth father, then she wouldn’t be able to recover from that. Rejection from a birth father was just as bad as telling the baby to its face that it should be fed to the wolves. The father determined whether the child should really exist or not. That level of shame was way harder to forgive with some arguing it to be unforgivable. If that is true and she was rejected by her father, then she shouldn’t even be friends with Link. Shouldn’t even look at him because it could risk -him- being dragged down as well. She couldn’t do that to him, not with so much on his shoulders and so many eyes on him. As the hero the land needs, people should look up at him and not down._

 

_What angered her was the fact that she couldn’t control any other this. The only thing she can control is the steady amounts of prayers she is sending towards Hylia in hopes that none of this is true, and it’s all just one big joke. After all…she needs to know someone who witness the whole situation, or at least knows her parents personally to confirm the allegations. And like Lenus said, no one in the castle comes from the same village as her mother…right?_

 

_In the back of her mind, however, she felt like she knew._

 

_She just denied it for so long because honestly hurts and ignorance is sometimes for the better._

 

_The captain was right though._

 

_Flowers can’t hide forever in the wild. They will be found, will be plucked, and will be left out to die._

 

_***_

 

 Link opens his eyes to look onward at an old fire pit with nothing left but ashes. He and Epona decided to set up camp last night and rest until morning. He looks over across from him to see that Epona is still asleep. Not wanting to bother her, he decides to take some time to finish up reading Daruk’s journal. He pulls it out and flips to the page he marked to read later by turning the corner of the page over.

 

_"All my Hylian brother seems to do these days is watch over the tiny princess while she does her research. It looks like tough work, but the princess seems a lot happier and talks more since she's been doin' it, so it must be OK. I hear the little guy finally opened up about his troubles to the princess while they were shovelin' food. Surprisingly, she opened up right back. Said somethin' princessy like, "I guess we're the same, you and I."_

 

This last entry is what brought back memories.

 

***

 

_“Alright here we are, Deya Village, lovely isn’t it?” Zelda beamed with joy as she looks back over at her silent knight. She takes a moment to sit down on the ground. “Come on, sit with me.”_

 

_Link nods and sits besides her while looking down from the hill at the busy village. It was big and just as busy as Castle town is on a daily basis._

 

_“H-Here,” Link looks over at the princess to see her holding a hunk of bread. “This was freshly made this morning. Have some.”_

 

_“I-I-“_

 

_“Don’t get all flustered on me. Go on, take it.”_

 

_Link mumbles out a nervous “thank you” before taking the bread in his hands. He eats it as Zelda talks._

 

_“This Village is known to have quite a lot of ancient artifacts and parts for the guardians. Since finding the parts this place really has flourished, perhaps it is begin while digging them up, it has been revealed that this place is covered with rich soil and water underneath the surface.” Zelda looks over at Link who currently has his mouth full of bread. “Ah, but enough about that, tell me about yourself.”_

 

_Link looks shock as he swallows the food. “M-Me?’_

 

_Zelda nods. “How about we start about where you grew up.”_

 

_“W-We don’t have to talk about me, there’s really nothing interesting about my life. I prefer listening.”_

 

_“I see…but what if I want to do the listening? I know I tend to talk people’s ears off… so perhaps I should learn to listen more. Starting with you of course.” The princess gives him a warm smile that could make any person’s heart stop._

 

_“W-Well I-I…I was born in Hateno, but moved to Castle town when I was young.”_

 

_“I see…closer to yours father’s work.”_

 

_“Correct.”_

 

_“I see… why is that?”_

 

_“What do you mean?”_

 

_“Why did you move?”_

 

_Link’s movements become stiff, having a hard time finding words, if he even wanted to find the words in the first place._

 

_“I-I apologize. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to-“_

 

_“My mother died, that’s why.”_

 

_“O-Oh…” Zelda looks down in sympathy. “I-I’m so sorry. You didn’t have to reveal -that-.”_

 

_Link simply looks out beyond the horizon. “It’s fine. I’ve only really opened up about it to someone else once.”_

 

_“Who was it?”_

 

_Link shakes his head. “They don’t really matter right now.”_

 

_“I see…is that why you don’t talk that much?”_

 

_Link shakes his head no._

 

_“Then why don’t you talk often?’_

 

_Link tenses up and his eyes begin to move back and forth as if wishing to avoid the question. His silent prayer is answered as a raindrop hits his nose. And then another one. And another one._

 

 _“Looks like it’s starting to rain. Come on, let’s get some shelter for you.” Link looks around and his keen eyes spots a large tree by two deity statues. They both stand up and he leads her over there. Zelda sits down besides the deities and Link decides to take his sword out and practice despite the recent downpour. Zelda decides to take the time and watch his movements and way with the sword._ Zelda looks up at the sky and watches the rain fall,

 

_“I doubt this will let up anytime soon…”_

 

_Link doesn’t hear her through the rain and continues to practice._

_“Your path seems to mirror your father’s. You’ve dedicated yourself to becoming a knight as well. Your commitment to the training necessary to fulfill your goal is really quite admirable.”_

_Link takes a find swing and holds his sword out in front of him, letting out a steady exhale before looking back over at Zelda who has a solemn smile on her face, noticing how she was talking to him the whole time._

_“I see now why you would be the chosen one.” She frowns and adverts her gaze. “What if…one day…”_

_Link senses that the conversation is taking a serious route, so he turns his whole body around so he is facing her completely and listens to her think out loud._

_“You realized that you just weren’t meant to be a fighter. Yet the only thing people ever said…was that you were born into a family of the royal guard, and so that no matter what you thought, you had to become a knight. If that was the only thing you were ever told… I wonder then…would you have chosen a different path?”_

 

***

_Giggles were heard as they walked up towards her room with both of them coming back in the middle of the night with clothes still damp from the earlier rain._

 

_“Well today was fun.” Zelda smiles and Link gives her a nod. “You’re standing guard between my room and study?”_

 

_Link nods. “I quite like the outdoors, I don’t mind at all.”  
_

 

_“Alright well, goodnight my appointed knight.” Zelda lays her hand on her bedroom’s door knob._

 

_“Wait.”_

 

_Zelda turns and looks back at him with wide emerald eyes. “Yes?”_

 

_“…Call me Link.”_

 

_“I see...y’know Link, now that I think about it, you never did answer my question.”_

 

_“Hm? About what?”_

 

_“About why you don’t talk that much.”_

 

_“Oh right well…” Once again he tenses up and looks like he wants to run away, but he finally responses in almost a whisper. “With so much at stake, and so many eyes on me…I just feel its necessary to stay strong and to silently bear any burden”_

 

_“L-Link…”_

 

_“A-Anyways, goodnight Princess-“_

 

_“Zelda.”_

 

_“Huh?”_

 

_“Just…just call me Zelda…that will suffice.” She smiles warmly at him and a his cheeks turn a slight rosy shade._

 

_“R-Right, goodnight Zelda.”_

 

_“Oh and Link?”_

 

_“Y-Yes Princess- I-I mean Zelda?”_

 

_“I don’t think you and are very different…truly.” She opens her bedroom door and leaves him with that last statement imprinted in his mind._

 

_***_

 

“(Y/n)?….(Y/n)….(Y/n)!!”  
  
“A-Ah! What?!”

 

Tass chuckles and nudges her. “Stuck in the clouds again aren’t ya?”

 

“N-No not at all.”

 

“Well those pens aren’t gonna clean themselves…unless y’know…there’s something else on your mind.”

 

“No not really…I mean, I guess you could say that there is a dream that I had last night that’s been bothering me.”

 

“Oh really?” Tass voice filled with worry.

 

“Yeah. There was this…man…and I tried to reach out to him.”

 

“Ah I see a manifestation of your desire for companionship.”

 

“Heh heh very funny, but I don’t know if that’s it. D-Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing that important.”

 

“Alright well, better get back to work.”

 

“Yes sir!”

 

Tass leaves her and (y/n)’s smile slowly fades. The dream was so much more detailed than what she just described to him. The man was Link, and he was with a woman of divine beauty. She was the princess…Princess Zelda. She knew because she remembered in the dream the woman said “Just call me Zelda, that will suffice.” Zelda and Link were above her andon a crosswalk between two towers. Her hand reached up in the air right before her vision got blurry and she fled the scene with hot tears flowing down her cheeks.

 

What made matters worse was that the hand was wrapped heavily with bandages that had blood seeping out of the fabric and in dire need of being changed. Just thinking about it reminded (y/n) of the porcelain that cut deep into her skin.

 

What kind of sick joke was the universe playing on her?

 

Yes she’s said it time and time again that she would bear the pain; she needed to know the truth about her past.

 

And yet there the universe goes again proving to her just how stupid she is.

 

Is what she’s doing, what she desires even worth it?

 

Is it worth it to know a painful truth?

 

Back when she was a child she would dream about being stuck in a building with nothing but hungry flames licking up the walls and threatening to take her too into their mouths.

 

But she would always wake up right before she caught on fire or anything worse than that happened to her.

 

But these dreams now…have pain in them. And they don’t stop after she wakes up either.

 

They say that people who fall in love become happy fools, but she would like to laugh right in their face about that statement.

 

Because this love is slowly killing her and only looks at her from behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why are we still here? Just to suffer
> 
> Oh yeah and here's my tumblr link in cause you didn't see it in the earlier notes: https://melodic-gamer.tumblr.com/
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	21. Other Paths, Other Ways

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh look at this, a chapter to try and fix my angsty boo boos and redeem myself

“I know it’s not your fault… but I keep having this dream. It’s really bothering me to be honest.”

 

(Y/n) spoke while laying her head on Thea’s lap and staring at the crystal blue sky, once again being in the garden.

 

“I know, I sense your discomfort even as we speak.” Thea speaks in almost a whisper and she tries to untangle (y/n)’s (h/c) hair. “I’m so sorry, I don’t know why this is happening. I’m not even trying to show them to you….”

 

“Neither am I… perhaps it’s because I feel like he’s being pulled further and further away from me.”

 

“Why do you think that?”

 

“Well… first of all…that night… the night ofthe blood moon… he held me. It wasn’t a hug or a simple “wrap your arms around someone while also trying to not touch them for that long” kind of way. No, he -held- me. And then just like that he was gone.” (Y/n) sighs and closes her eyes. “We were so close too…”

 

“Maybe… these feelings are making you subconsciously remember the… unpleasant points of my lifetime. You have become better at communicating with me after all. I wouldn’t be surprised if you are starting to remember more detailed, complex, and suppressed memories without my assistance.”

 

“It’s plausible. It’s also doesn’t help the fact that I haven’t seen him in so long. It’s like he’s avoiding me.”

 

“What did happen during the blood moon was very…” Thea paused, trying to find the right word as her body turns a rose color, “intense.”

 

“It was and that’s what frustrates me,” (Y/n) sits up and picks at the blades of grass. “You think he’s doing this on purpose?”

 

“Doing what on purpose?”

 

“Not remembering you. He seems to know about you and him as children quite well, or at least well enough to guess that you were close as kids, but as adults I just-“ she cuts herself off with a frustrated sigh “I don’t know.”

 

Thea stares out at the horizon, but (y/n) knew she was think based on the fact that her body keeps fluctuating between a deep indigo and a rich violet.

 

“I have some theories on why he might be remembering certain memories while still having no knowledge of major chucks of his lifetime, though I feel it is too early to confirm any of these. What I do know however is Link is never a man to just wish to forget something on purpose. He would rather bear it than forget it.”

 

“Mind telling me one of the theories?”

 

Thea shakes her head, “like I said, it is way too early to confirm anything. I don’t want to tell you a theory that is completely false and have it alter your view on him and sabotage everything we have done thus far.”

 

“I-…touché.”

 

“For now the best we can do is support him as best as we can on his journey. I believe that he will remember eventually.”

 

“Yeah about that… how the hell am I suppose to help him? I barely see him and even when I do see him it’s about as if he’s looking right through me. He also never stays at the stable for very long. I-I mean I don’t mean to be selfish. I know he has a world to save. We are on the verge of the world ending after all… and a kingdom is -definitely- more important than a girl…but still I just wish he could-”

 

“Relax? Pay attention to you? Stop running away? Just give you his full attention for a solid minute? Stop being stupid? All of the above?”

 

“All of the above.”

 

“I see…” Her figure reverts back to the default lavender color. “Perhaps we are looking at it the wrong way.”

 

(Y/n)’s (e/c) eyes narrow in question. “What do you mean?”

 

“It seems like… you guys were bonding just fine without me, perhaps if I didn’t show myself to you, or even tried to intervene, you two would’ve been fine.”

 

“Don’t say that.”

 

“Well it’s true. I’m just making things more complicated.”

 

“Any knot can be untied, we’ll be fine. There’s always another way. Besides… it’s also partially my fault too, y’know what they say…. curiosity killed the cat.”

 

“… We’re both messes, aren’t we?”

 

“Yep.”

 

Thea tries, but fails to contain a chuckle from inside her. (Y/n) laughs out loud as well.

 

“It’s not too late to fix this.”

 

(Y/n) cocks her head to the side like a confused puppy, causing Thea to continue to talk in order to explain herself.

 

“A traveler spoke about how two lasers are now pointed towards the castle, correct?”

 

“Correct.”

 

“So that means that he still has two of the four divine beasts to free, there’s still time if that’s the case.”

 

“But he’s still gonna try and free them as soon as possible.”

 

“Yes but the Gerudo Desert and the Hebra Mountains are far from here, make an impression the next time you see him, and then,” Thea points at her noggin, “all he’ll have during the long journey are his thoughts and whatever impression you left on him. Try not to make him remember me. Try to make him remember you.”

 

***

 

Epona and Link finally made it back to the now familiar region of West Necluda. As they passed the well known stable by the Dueling Peaks, which was surprising quiet tonight, Epona seemed to come to a stop.

 

“Hm, Epona? What’s wrong girl?”

 

Link looks back at the stable and then back at her.

 

“Epona come on girl, we’re not that far from home, we’re gonna rest there instead.”

 

Epona doesn’t budge.

 

“Epona. Come on.”

 

Epona lets out a big snort and goes down the path towards Hateno Village. Every so often, however, she would look back at the stable with sad eyes.

 

***

 

The sun was setting by the time Link got the courage to finally look at Daruk’s weapon as he hangs it on the wall on the left side of Mipha’s trident. They were two warriors. They were two Champions.

 

Above all else, they were two friends of his.

 

And they were gone.

 

At least they were free from their century long imprisonment. It was just a shame that his heart isn’t free yet.

 

But this was no time to be sorrowful, he had no time for guilt.

 

Two more were waiting for him, he must hurry.

 

He opens the heavy, wooden door belonging to his home looking out the peaceful settlement and steps out. Link takes in a deep breath, filling his lungs with the fresh air, before exhaling out all the air he let in slowly and climbs back on top of Epona.

 

“We’ll go to Kakariko Village, give Impa a progress report, and head out to the nearest Divine beast from here, okay girl?”

 

Epona nickers in agreement.

 

“Okay, lead the way.”

 

***

 

“It’s a really pretty sunset tonight, eh Violet?” (Y/n) spoke to the Hylian Retriever as she rubs her companion’s belly. Violet barks out happily and sticks her tongue out causing (Y/n) to giggle.

 

“You’re such a good girl, Violet.”

 

Violet rolls back over and gets back on her feet before resting her chin on (y/n)’s thigh. (Y/n) rubs her companions head and watches as the dog shuts her eyes half way and smacks her tail against her ankle out of content.

 

“I’m gonna be honest with you…I miss him.”

 

The dog lifts her head a bit and tilts her head to the side. She whimpers in question.

 

“You know who I’m talking about… I miss him.” She frowns and looks back at the sun set as if is being perfectly framed between the two massive peaks.

 

“I just want to know if he’s okay.”

 

***

 

Link opens the door to meet up with Impa, but is only met instead with a stressful sight - Impa had her head bowed down in deep thought as Paya cried mercilessly.

 

“Paya? What’s wrong? What happened?” Link walks over and takes a hold of Paya’s shoulders.

 

“O-Oh M-Master L-Link, I-I’m s-so s-sorry. Th-The h-heirloom, i-it’s g-gone. I-I j-just saw-saw-saw it-it th-this a-afternoon and n-now-” Paya kept stuttering and hiccuping, making it hard to Link to figure out exactly what she was talking about.

 

“Master Link,” the thin voice gains Link’s attention and he turns to look at the elder. “Please take her to her room, I’ll explain everything later, but for now calming Paya down is our top priority.”

 

Link nods and leads Paya up to her room, turning back and seeing how the pedestal that usually holds the heirloom is indeed missing its other half.

 

***

 

It was around ten at night by the time Link leaves Impa’s house. As he walks down the wide stairwell his shoulder hit against Dorian’s causing both to jump and pull out their weapons. When the realization that they were allies kicked in, they both exhaled in unison before sheathing their swords.

 

“Master Link. You’re still here. I was unaware of it.”

 

“Yeah, Impa was worried about Paya’s safety so I decided to stay.”

 

“I see, that is understandable considering the family heirloom has been stolen.”

 

“So I heard…what I don’t understand,” Link looks at the elder with a flicker of suspicion in his cerulean eyes, “is how something of such value could be stolen. I mean, it is guarded at all time… correct?”

 

“Correct Master Link. You must forgive this mistake. We will try to bring it back as soon as possible. It is one of Lady Paya’s most prized possessions after all.”

 

“I can help.”

 

“O-Oh no Master Link. We cannot bother you with such a task considering all you have done for us.”

 

“I-..okay…you…you have a good night Dorain.”

 

“You as well Master Link.”

 

Link watches down the last few steps and goes over to Epona. As he adjust her saddle, he sees from the corner of his eye Dorian running over to the area where the Great Fairy Cotera rests.

 

“I knew something was up, you wait here girl” Link unsheathes his sword from behind his back and begins to follow Dorian from the shadows.

 

His boots weren’t an advance, and at times he just wanted to rip them off his feet and continue sneaking barefoot, but he also had a feeling it was a bad idea. He would just have to plan out is steps very carefully.

 

Dorian would keep turning his back causing Link to have to think fast when it came to hiding spots. Lucky for Link, where they were going was filled with quite a bit of vegetation for him to hide in. It wasn’t long before he crossed a poorly built wooden bridge and hid behind a tree by the orange glowing and finely carved platform with Dorian standing by it and on high alert. Dorian clenches his fists tightly, shaking from adrenaline before unseating his eightfold blade.

 

“I know you’re there! Show yourself!”

 

Link swallowed hard as a lump in his throat began to form, believing that Dorian was talking to him. Guess he was caught.

 

Just as he was about to reveal where he was hiding a giant grey puff of smoke appear above the ancient platform to reveal and tall, buff man covered from head to toe in skin tight red and black clothing. His face was covered with a white masked marked with a red upside down Sheikah tribe symbol. The stranger also carried a two-handed sword shaped similar to blades make by the Sheikah. The blade shimmered brightly in the moon light and if Link squinted enough he could pick up faded blood stains on it. The blade man laughs out loud, his voice enough to shake the ground underneath everyone’s feet before speaking in a dark, smooth, and cunning voice.

 

“There is no need to shout. I am here.”

 

“So -you’re- the one who stole the heirloom!”

 

The man lets out another rumbling chuckle. “My, such anger. I guess this thing is quite special to the fools in the village after all.”

 

“Why are you doing this?!”

 

“My dear Dorian, you knew what you were getting into the second you left us.” The stranger gestures over towards the heirloom laying by his feet. “But I do suppose you were of some use, after all, you did tell us the location of it.”The stranger tighten his grip on his wind cleaver. “Unfortunately for you, that is as far as your usefulness will go.

 

Link gets ready to pounce as he holds his sword in a death grip. He jumps out of his hiding spot only to step on a twig, giving away his location sooner than wanted. Link freezes up as he senses the smile crept up across the blade master’s face from underneath the mask.

 

“But I guess… I will have to take care of your guess first.”

 

“No don’t-“

 

The blade master slammed down his blade on the ground, causing a hard line of wind to go in the direction of where Link stood. Link is quick to dodge the attack by rolling out of its way. The blade master huffs out loud as he tilts his head to the side to crack along with loosening up his shoulder muscles.

 

“I do have to give you credit hero for trying to take on a member of the Yiga Clan without your trusty “sword of evil’s bane”. Tell me dear hero, are you no longer worthy of it.”

 

“In your dreams pal,” Link scoffs out as he stand back up, taking out his knight’s shield from behind his back and straps it across his left arm.

 

The blade master doesn’t hesitate to bring his blade back down close to Link. Link waits and times the parry perfectly, causing the blade master’s sword to fly out of his hand giving time for Link to retaliate and give the Yiga member as must damage as he can inflict. Before Link could deal the finishing blow, the Yiga Clan member vanishes into thin air, leaving only the blade and heirloom behind as proof of his presence.

 

Dorian picks up the heirloom and walks over to Link with his head bowed down.

 

“I…I can’t believe you followed me…” He chuckles out of self defense. “I’m more hurt at the fact that I, a highly skilled Sheikah warrior, didn’t notice your presense.”

 

Link shrugs, “perhaps I’m just good at hiding then anything.”

 

“Yeah, perhaps….” Dorian eyes narrow in guilt as he bites his lip. “I’m sorry this is all my fault. I was once a spy to the Yiga Clan…but then I met my late wife and I just - I wanted to become a better man for her. I tried to leave the Yigas… but they did the unthinkable. They killed the love of my life, and then threatened to do the same to my children if I didn’t corporate. They made me use my position as a guard to Lady Impa and Paya to gather information for them… but I knew I couldn’t keep doing this. I tried again to cut away recently, but this time around they threatened to kill Lady Impa and Paya themselves if I did cut away and not tell them of where the heirloom was…I’m so sorry,” Dorian attempts to hide his face by pressing it against the orange glowing orb, “I am so sorry for all of my sins.”

 

“Dorian…” Link takes a hold of the orb and takes it into his hands. “It’s okay. I forgive you. After all,” Link’s azure eyes soften as he traces over the orbs glowing grooves, “there are some things I wish I could change form my past as well…”

 

Dorian couldn’t help but crack a smile. “I can see now why Paya was so determined to help you out Master Link. She worked day and night to try to figure out the connection between the heirloom and this platform we are standing. I believe that only you are able to unlock that secret though however…go on chosen hero, place the orb on the platform.”

 

Link is hesitant as first, but obeys anyways, taking the orb in his hand and placing it in the small indent in the center of the platform. Sure enough the platform’s lights turn from orange to blue as the ground shakes and a shrine emerges from underneath the ground. Link looks over at the shrine, scanning his Sheikah Slate on the pedestal besides it to register it into the Slate.

 

“I guess there’s nothing else I can do for you Master Link. If you would allow it, I would like to go back home and check on my children.”

 

“No Dorian, go ahead and while you're at it…thank Paya.”

 

Dorian nods, “Will do. I’m assuming that this means that you are leaving.”

 

Link gives a small nods and he sees worry spread across the Sheikah’s face.

 

“Please be careful Master Link. The Yiga Clan is not an organization that forgets, especially something as humiliating as tonight. They will be on your tail more. Not to mention that the monsters outside of this village are getting stronger as we speak.”

 

“I understand, Ganon really isn’t backing down is he?”

 

“I’m afraid not. But, I do believe there is someone who could help you out with this growing strength coming from the enemy.”

 

“Really? Who?”

 

“Impa and Purah haven’t talked to him in so long, but he's a researcher who worked alongside them a century ago. He is known for his research in ancient weaponry.”

 

“Who is he? Where can I find him?”

 

“His name is Robbie from the Akkala region.”

 

“Thank you for that information.”

 

“Anything for you Master Link.” Dorian turns to leave.

 

“Wait.”

 

“Yes Master Link?”

 

“Could you also tell me…where exactly the Yiga Clan reside?”

 

“Their headquarters are west of here, by the Gerudo Highlands.”

 

“Thank you, I will take care of them as well.”

 

“Be careful Master Link.” Dorian speaks in concern before leaving Link to himself.

 

Link takes another deep breath in and lets it out before heading inside the shrine. “First, I’ll take care of this shrine… and then off to Akkala.”

 

***

 

It was midnight now, and Link was off again with Epona to some other unknown region of Hyrule. He didn’t rush Epona like he usually does, sensing that she is tired. Not only that…but she has been pretty…irritable lately.

 

Like before they get to where the Dueling Peaks Stable is and Epona comes to a halt.

 

“Epona, we have to go.”

 

She shakes her head and whines.

 

“I know you’re tired, but we don’t have time for this, Hyrule needs us. We can rest when we get to Proxim Bridge.”

 

That line of thought didn’t make her desire to move. Link sighs, catching on to her behavior.

 

“I know you want to see…-her-…but we can’t we have to go.”

 

Still nothing.

 

“Epona.” Link nudges her on the side with the heel on his boot, and although he did it very gently, it still sent her off the edge.

 

Epona begins to rear back, causing Link to have to cling onto the reins for dear life, trying desperately to take a hold of her mane and soothe her. Epona whines and cries, waking up everyone at the stable.

 

Well almost everyone.

 

(Y/n) was sound asleep in bed with her door shut tightly. However all the ruckus outside made Violet uneasy and she came running down the hallway and starts to scratch on her door while barking loudly.

 

(Y/n) groans hearing the sudden barking and sits up in bed, rubbing her sleepy eyes.

 

“Hylia, what is it?” Her voice still carrying a sense of grogginess as she gets out of bed, still in her nightgown and walking barefoot to open the door. She opens the door to be greeted by Violet grabbing onto (y/n)’s nightgown sleeve with her sharp fangs and dragging her towards the stable’s entrance.

 

“Violet, what’s the meaning of this?” She speaks with annoyance, yet her sleepiness prevents her from becoming -too- loud. She gets over to the entrance and witnesses something she never though she would see in a hundred years.

 

There was Link, the man she’s been secretly wanting to see again, desperately trying to calm down his usually gentle steed. Epona eye’s catches sight of (y/n) and she immediately stops rearing, goes back to standing on all four of her legs, and completely calms down. Link looks down at the reins as he lets go of them, eyes wide and bewildered over the whole situation before meeting eye contact with (y/n).

 

Big blue eyes were looking straight into big (e/c) eyes and (y/n) felt all previous grogginess vanish as the once tiring sensation is replaced with a heavy thumping in her chest and a voice in her head.

 

 

_“Try not to have him remember me. Try to have him remember you.”_

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Link: *being stupid and trying to run away*
> 
> Epona: I'm about to save this man's whole relationship
> 
> Anyways I have nothing else to say, so it's time for me to become like any other youtuber/social media influencer/innocent person who gave their soul to satan: advertise myself!
> 
> Make sure you leave a kudo on this work if you are enjoying it thus far if you haven't already and feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you think (cause I'm secretly a whore for compliments) (or y'know you could roast me too that's cool)have yet to find a hate comment so you can be the very first one ;) )
> 
> If you wish, you can also follow me on tumblr (https://melodic-gamer.tumblr.com/) where I will probably start posting more content and updates on upcoming chapters (which I should've done from the very start - oh well we tried). Or y'know you can ask me something over there/roast me if this platform isn't enough to quench your hatred for me :D
> 
> Anyways thank you so much for reading and I will try to update soon! Buh Bye!


	22. Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone were to ask me what my favorite chapter is I would answer Chapter 10: Mother.
> 
> It just worked -so- well with what the actual game provided me unintentionally (seriously fire up your game and look at Mabe Village, there is a lone tree by the village that Link can't cut down to harvest wood that also is a great spot to view the castle - I just had to write about the history of that tree I'm sorry). Also the fact that so many people reacted to that chapter so strongly and expressing the exact kinds of emotions I wanted to invoke makes it one of my favorites.
> 
> But this chapter I mean... don't wanna get hopes up, but it's on par with Chapter 10.
> 
> And here I thought I peaked too soon XD
> 
> Anyways enjoy!

 Time is weird.

 

While other people viewed the whole situation as a waste of time or a loss of precious time that could be spent sleeping, the two didn’t see it that way.

 

Time is different to everyone.

 

And at that moment, time stopped for the two of them.

 

The sound of people grumbling as they went back to sleep didn’t matter, the sound of cuccos, goats, and horses freaking out before fading into a state of calmness didn’t matter, the sound and the feeling of the cold wind hitting against their skin didn’t matter, and the rushing waterfall over the body of water by the bright, blue, glowing, ancient shrine didn’t matter.

 

Nothing matters when time stops.

 

It took a hand on (Y/n)’s shoulder to snap her out of the trace and rip her back into the reality of time. As she looks up she sees who the hand belongs to.

 

“I think, I’m turning in for the night. I’m sure you can take care of the rest.” Tass gives her a smile that could only belong to a caring fatherly figure before letting go of her shoulder and leaving the scene.

 

He knew he had no place there. They should have some privacy was what he thought as he went into his room. What happened that night as the blood red moon rose high into the sky was more than just a comforting gesture in the face of fear. No, the young hero, showed a hint of his own kind of fear as he held onto her. Despite the serious expression the Hylian always carries on his face - even while looking up at the horrific sight in the sky on that night - he still could not stop that fear from leaking out. Tass saw this, and he knew what kind of fear it was exactly. He could emphasize with it.

 

Because he felt that same way once upon of time when his brother’s life was in danger.

 

Some fears are easy to hide, but not when it comes to the fear of losing someone close to you.

 

Which to Tass seemed odd to see coming from the young hero. Sure they seemed to get along just fine, but their relationship before seemed to just be skin deep. Nothing that showed any sigh of an upbringing together through blood or years and years of bonding that would form an unbreakable friendship.

 

…

 

…

 

Perhaps he was wrong after all.

 

***

 

(Y/n) came back to reality thanks to Tass, and it wasn’t long before Link would try and leave again.

 

Time was running out between the two.

 

She takes a few steps towards him only for him to grab back onto the reins and smile nervously.

 

“Heh heh sorry about that, I don’t know what got into her, a-anyways we’ll be off-“

 

Epona rears again and jerks her head back while shaking it, causing the reins to rip out of Link’s hand and him to fall onto the ground before being able to grab a hold of her neck. He falls with a loud clatter due to the equipment on his back. Epona goes on all fours and snorts as (Y/n) comes over to his side while trying to hold back a laugh.

 

“Y’know… there’s an old saying that says that horses will not obey if they are not on the same page as the owner.”

 

“Yeah..go figure.” Link speaks through gritted teeth as he sits up, taking off his equipment and setting it off to the side so he could rub his back to ease up the pain from hitting hard dirt road. (Y/n) kneels down besides him as her humorous nature quickly turns into concern - he looks in worse shape up close, noticing how he has a thin layer of sweat all over him and looks out of breath. She lifts his bangs back to expose his forehead and eyes despite Link trying to jerk away from her.

 

“Come on, let me see if you’re hurt.”

 

“I’m fine I swear- ow ow ow!” Link tried to move away from her only to be stopped by shooting pains coming from his sides and back.

 

“One peak from me is not gonna hurt you.”

 

Link sighs and finally obeys, although he didn’t appreciate the fact that the second he sat still for (Y/n) the corners of her lips turned downward and (e/c) eyes narrow in anger.

 

“No wonder she’s so upset. Look at the bags under your eyes. Tell me - when was the last time you had a good night’s rest?”

 

“Yesterday.”

 

“Liar. How many hours did you sleep the night before.”

 

“Link bites his bottom lip and averts his eyes away from her. His hand linger over to his bracer as he begins to fiddle with it.

 

“…one…”

 

“Say that again?”

 

“One…maybe two hours at most.”

 

(Y/n) lets out a sigh and rubs the temples of her head with her dominant hand.  “How about the night before that one?”

 

“Why are you-?”

 

“Just answer the question.” There was a bite in her voice that made him feel obligated to answer.

 

“I didn’t sleep at all.”

 

(Y/n)’s nose crinkles in disbelief and feels his forehead with the back of her hand.

 

“…You have a fever.”

 

“N-No I don’t.”

 

“Yeah you do. Your head is hotter than Death Mountain. We have to break it.” (Y/n) stands up and gets him back on his feet, practically dragging him over to the small body of water by the shrine and having him sit back down.

 

“Don’t. Move.” She scolds before heading back inside to grab a dry, white cloth and a red elixir.

 

Link waits for her as he picks up stones and tosses them into the water. Talk about being treated like a child. (Y/n) comes back and kneels beside him, dipping the cloth in the chilling water before placing it over his forehead.

 

“Hold onto it and drink this,” (Y/n) says as she pops the cork off the small bottle and handing it to him.

 

Link takes it and drinks it all in one gulp before cringing and sticking his tongue out from the bitter aftertaste it left behind in his mouth.

 

“I don’t think I could get use to that taste.”

 

“Well it’s medicine, it’s not suppose to taste good.”

 

“That sounds exactly like something she would say…”

 

“Who would say it?”

 

Link’s words catches in his throat as he looks back over at the empty bottle that only has a drop left of the elixir.

“Thea…”

 

(Y/n) herself feels goosebumps creep up her skin from hearing that familiar name heard out loud along with a massive punch in the gut.

 

“R-R-Right” was all she was able to squeak out.

 

“You know…” Link inhales before exhaling completely and continuing on with his train of thought. “There was this one time when we were kids…we got in a fight with a couple of the kids from the town. We were totally outnumbered… but somehow we would able to escape from that with only a few minor injuries. That evening we spent together consisted of her trying to patch up my cuts and bruises… it was by a body of water too… well it was a river and not exactly this but… it’s similar enough to this situation… it just makes me wonder if she’s still out there or if I’ll ever see them again…”

 

“Link…” How the hell is she supposed to respond to that statement? “You know… the truth is-”

 

“You once had a friend who went by the name Thea as well,right?”

 

“Huh? Oh yeah…Yeah.” Shit. She forgot about that remark she made.

 

“What was she like when you two were friends? Was she like my Thea…?”

 

“Uuuuhhhh…” How is she supposed to respond to this as well?! “I-maybe? I don’t know, she was kind and caring… y’know the usually good people stuff… I guess.”

 

“Why did you lose touch with her?”

 

‘Because she’s actually your Thea, who by the way is fucking dead’, was what she wanted to tell him, but she bit back her words and instead tried to reply back to the question in the most logic, unsuspicious way possible.

 

“Well y’know, people change over time… and as people move away so do the connections and bonds you make. Sure there’s letters you can write to them, but there’s no telling whether the other party will respond to them or not… and sure you could visit them but well, face it, in this day and age it’s dangerous to travel even if it's only a few miles away from home with all the monsters lurking day and night. It’s just a natural thing that happens in life. Some friends you keep and some you have to let go.”

 

“Don’t you feel any guilt about letting them go?” Link speaks with exasperation.

 

“Huh?”

 

“Like - maybe -“ Link huffs out as he tries to collect his thoughts, his fingers weaving into the back of his bracer and playing with the straps constantly unbuckling and re-buckling them again. His lips twisting and turning and eyebrows knitting in distress. “You always think that maybe…there was another way. Maybe if you had said another ‘hello’ to them or ask how their day was one last time, this wouldn’t have happened. You guys would still be friends. Or maybe if you actually-“ he stops as an image of Mipha lights up in his head and how crushed she looked over his rejection, “Maybe if you just went with what the person wanted, accepted their confession, just-“ another image flashes in his mind of Daruk holding him in a back breaking hug, “just another dinner with them, maybe then they would still be happy and well. You wonder if maybe the fall out… was your fault, and you know damn well it could’ve been prevented if you just put yourself out there more… if you decided to just open your mouth for once and stop being silent… but it’s too late… I guess that ancient saying is true…” Link’s lips finally curve into a fake smile to bury it all, he lowers his head and his bangs cover up his eyes, “time is cruel… time passes, people move… like a river’s flow, it never ends… and they’re all moving away from me.”

 

The end of the waterfall clashes with the calm waters below it, making a noise that was the only thing heard at that time as silence spread around the two like the plague.

 

In that moment of silence, perhaps she was acting too bold, but silence along with time can cause people to do actions out of their character and out of their control.

 

She takes hold of his right hand, the one with the bracer wrapped around its respectful wrist, and intertwined her fingers with his. His left hand immediately stops playing with the straps and his eyes darts over to meet with her serene, (e/c) eyes.

 

“Relationships…only work if both parties are willing to put out the same amount of effort… so no one should blame a fall out on just a specific person.”

 

Link opens his mouth to speak but (y/n) whispers cut him off, and although they were whispers to the public, they were booming and gut wrenching in his ears.

 

“I’m sure nobody blames you for what happened. You did the best job you could at the time. You really did a good job.”

  

_You’re a good man._

 

Link stops breathing after hearing the woman’s voice in his head. A voice that still doesn’t have a face he could connect it to, and for that reason it makes him feel terrified. He rips his hands out of (y/n)’s and stands up abruptly, the cloth that was once on his forehead falling onto the ground, holding his hands to his sides.

 

“How can you say that?”

 

She cocks her head to the side in questioning.

 

“Say what?”

 

“Say -that-? That I did the best I could. That I did a good job. You don’t know what I’ve done.” Link looks down remembering the Calamity shaking the earth as it first woke up and seeing his comrades for the first time in 100 years as nothing more than spirits. “You don’t know anything.”

 

“So?” She stands up “that doesn’t mean I can’t think you’re a good man.”

  

_You’re a good man_

  

“No, no. Don’t say that!”

 

“Why not? Am I not allowed an opinion?”

 

He clenches his teeth and his hands ball into fists.

 

“Because you don’t know anything about me! How do you know I’m a good person?! You barely know me! How?! Just tell me how?!”

 

The man’s voice was raw. It was harsh, and a few drops of spit hit against her cheek from his shouting. And yet she allowed him to let it all out as she looks at him with tranquility still painted on her face and speaks with an unwavering tone.

 

“You think a terrible person would feel the amount of guilt you are feeling? No. People with no such moral compass go their whole lives without a sliver of regret in their actions and how they could affect someone else. But you… you at least feel it. And if your words are not enough to prove your innocence then we can talk about how your actions do.”

 

“My actions?”

 

“Right after you showed up here, our goats were taking by bokoblins…remember? I told you about the whole situation, and without hesitation you went out to rescue them. Of course, I went after you to help out only to end up being a burden to the whole operation.”

 

“That’s not-“

 

“I was waiting to breathe my last breath… and then out of nowhere came an arrow to strike the monster… yours to be exact.”

 

“But-“

 

“You were so quick to come to my aid…” She curses in her head as she feels her cheeks heat up, hoping that the night can cover up that fact from him, and even though he was the one with the fever, she felt herself begin to sweat as she speaks. She clears her throat to get back on track. “Don’t you see what this means?”

 

“No-“

 

“How about the fact that everyday I see people coming in in terrible condition and each and everyone one of them tell me that they are like this because they got attacked by some monsters, and it’s always a man with blonde hair and blue eyes that saved them.”

 

“It could be any-“

 

“And the man was also wearing a sky blue tunic.”

 

He swallows up his words at this fact being announced out loud.

 

“Why don’t we also talk about the fact that you always carry that thingy-ma-jiggy around your belt?”

 

“…It called a Sheikah Slate.”

 

“Okay well whatever. It seems important and expensive. They don’t just hand that out to any scumbag, especially if it can make ancient shrines, which may I remind you were not even glowing pretty colors until -you- magically showed up, blue.”

 

“I… don’t see where you’re going with this.”

 

“Saving people all the time, being able to do these… things to ancient architect, heck, even being able to feel guilt and keep fighting despite all that fear and guilt…how can you still not see it? You’re a hero Link!”

  

_You’re no hero_

 

Link wanted to desperately say something but he is nudge on the side by Epona’s snout. He looks over at her and she knickers at him, asking for forgiveness for her behavior. He sighs softly and wraps his arms around her neck.

 

“And a jerk wouldn’t forgive his steed for knocking him off of her despite the fact that he was sick.” (Y/n) says as she walks over to them with her arms crossed.

 

Epona huffs causing Link to chuckle lightly and pull back from the embrace.

 

“…So do you believe me now?”

 

“… I don’t know… but…” He looks over at her and gives her a tiny smile for reassurance, “I’ll try to see your point of view, even if I don’t understand it completely.”

 

She smiles back and laughs under her breath. “That’s all I can ask you to do.”

 

He goes ahead and straps his equipment back soon himself and climbs on top of Epona.

 

“Woah Woah Woah! Wait a second! Last time I checked -you- still have a fever.”

 

“Yeah, but I think that medicine is starting to kick in.”

 

(Y/n)’s eyes narrow in skepticism and reaches up to feel his head. Sure enough it was cool. Damn potent medicine. She pulls back and sighs.

 

“So I guess you’re leaving then again huh?…”

 

“Yeah I’m sorry, I don’t really have the luxury of spending too much time relaxing.”

 

“…Where are you going?”

 

“Akkala.”

 

“Just… please be safe,” she looks down and clutches on to some of the fabric by her chest area. “I know that you’re caught up in your past, and while I don’t know why exactly…” -Well that statement was a lie, she knew damn well why he’s caught up in all that, but she wasn’t ready to expose that much of her knowledge just yet - “just know…that there are people in the present you are affecting as well so please… please come back safe!” She blushes due to the fact that she shouted out the last statement quite loudly unintentionally.

 

“Don’t worry, I understand,” Link says this as he remembers the earlier incident with Dorian along with the interaction he and (Y/n) just had between each other right now, “give me a week and I’ll be back. I promise.”

 

“Okay.”

 

“Goodnight, (Y/n).”

 

She smirks. “Goodnight, hero.”

 

Link himself feels his cheeks heat up and fears that if he were to blush anymore his fever would come back. With that he nudges Epona’s side with the heel of his boot as a cry for help and she takes off. (Y/n) can’t help but laugh at the whole scene before looking back over at the waterfall.

 

While looking at the waterfall…something catches her eye… something was sticking out of the rocks by the waterfall. To be exact they where green stems, with big green leaves, and delicate grape colored petals.

 

“Swift violets…” (Y/n) breathed out, in awe at the fact that she is able to see them physically for the first time in her life. She thought she would never see them around here. After all, they only grew in high places such as the Gerudo Highlands and they certainly weren’t here before…unless.

 

“Thea… weren’t these your favorite flowers?”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the beautiful quotes that inspired this chapter from The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time told by Sheik:
> 
> "The flow of time is always cruel...  
> Its speed seems different for  
> each person, but no one can  
> change it...  
> A thing that doesn't change with  
> time is a memory of younger days..."
> 
> "Time passes, people move....  
> Like a river's flow, it never ends...  
> A childish mind will turn to  
> noble ambition... Young love will  
> become deep affection... The clear  
> water's surface reflects growth..."
> 
> Make sure you leave a kudo on this work if you are enjoying it thus far if you haven't already and feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you think (regular commenters I wanna know what your favorite chapter has been thus far - would be really interesting to see your reasoning for it as well)
> 
> Also follow me on tumblr (https://melodic-gamer.tumblr.com/) where I post more content and updates regarding this fanfic along with other things outside of this.
> 
> Thank you and I will see you next time. Bye!
> 
> Wait no I'm forgetting something...
> 
> Oh yeah! THANK YOU FOR 200 KUDOS! HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!


	23. The Past is Not Beautiful

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is really short/rushy in flow. I wanted to get something posted before I go to work and end up being too burned out to write anything at all. I will do better next time I promise.

_“Goodnight, hero.”_

 

Link takes a deep breath before exhaling, annoyed at how his cheeks are still red from embarrassment.Or perhaps he’s just blushing because he’s not used to compliments. It could go either way.

 

It was weird to have people call him that name. Sure, the Sheikah praise him, but that’s because there’s history behind their words.

 

Normal everyday Hylians don’t talk to him like that or praise him. Sure, they thank him for saving them, and sure, they usually offer up some of their supplies to him as payment, but none of them took the time to really call him out on his consistent deeds, much less call him a hero. Well, they have called him a hero before, but then again it may just be their adrenaline causing them to say that.

 

And he never actively asks for praise for his work. If anything, this whole thing feels like one big redemption story, and his attempt to repent his century old sin of not being able to protect Hyrule. No thoughts of “heroism” came into his head whenever he hopped off Epona to aid someone. He just felt he had to.

 

After all, they wouldn’t have to live in fear if he just did his job right in the first place.

 

But then…

 

_“You’re a hero, Link!”_

 

She was keeping track. She was listening to everyone and keeping tabs on him. Her words had weight. He felt history behind them. Her words make him want to believe.

 

But then again, the sensations he gets around her are so…bizarre.

 

Every time he talks to her since he began to regain more and more of his memory, he feels something in the back of his mind screaming at him that he’s suppose to remember something.

 

A sensation that you’ve known this person from somewhere, but you can’t put your finger on where exactly.

 

His mind keeps yelling at him to remember, but he can’t. It’s still buried in the “unknown area”.

 

If he had his way he would unbury it already and figure out the truth.

 

Unfortunately, the mind doesn’t work that way.

 

And yet, she was the one who made him remember in the first place without the aid of the Sheikah Slate. She was the key to unlocking the only memory he has of Thea that takes place during their late adolescence/early adulthood.

 

Perhaps…there’s a reason behind that.

 

As he crosses Proxim Bridge, Link takes out his Sheikah Slate to take a look at the map of Hyrule. He didn’t think crossing Hyrule Field was safe at the moment - not to mention that he was under equipped for anything at the moment - so he would need to find a shortcut. He skimmed around until his eye catches the site of the Bottomless Swamp on his map. It didn’t look too bad; they’ll take that detour. What could possibly go wrong?

 

***

 

Epona and Link made their way through the Swamp which didn’t cause them any problems. If there were bokoblins they probably couldn’t see them due to the malice that infested the whole place in great numbers as they began to get towards the more wooded parts of the area Link had Epona come to a halt as he jumps off of her. He takes in the surroundings around him.

 

“I’ve seen this before…” He thinks to himself before it finally hits him where. Link takes out the Sheikah Slate and scrolls through the diverse collection of photos until he came to a beautiful landscape photo that looks exactly like what is in front of him in the present.

 

***

 

_It was pouring rain like the Goddesses themselves were crying from the heavens as Link and Zelda fled into the woods. Both of them were in terrible shape with tattered clothes and mud clinging tightly to their skins. Link had a tight grip on Zelda’s hand as they fled, his mind foggy and heart pounding loudly against his chest. He had to get her to Kakariko Village as soon as possible, it was the closest village that has yet to see the effects of the Calamity. The Village was far away from the Guardians, the Divine beasts, the fire, the burning houses, the dying, the dead, the violent scenes that cannot be erased from history, all the lives lost, all his friends are gone, she is-_

 

_Zelda tripped and fell onto the ground, causing her hand to fall out of Link’s own hand. He takes notice and looks back before quickly running over to where she is now lying. He wanted to grab her hand and pull her back up so they can keep running, but Zelda seemed to be exhausted and hunched over on her knees. Now was not the time to be haste. They both needed to mourn. Even if it were for just a minute._

 

_“How…” She begins to speak as Linksheaths his sword and kneels beside her. “How did it come to this?”_

 

_“The Divine beasts…_

 

_The Guardians…_

 

_They’ve all turned against us…_

 

_It was…Calamity Ganon…”_

 

_Zelda bites her bottom lip and clenches her fists as they were pressed against the soggy earth. “It turned them all against us…”_

 

_Link watches as she looks at him with emerald eyes that have lost all shimmer as tears threaten to fall from them. “And everyone - Mipha, Urbosa, Revali, and Daruk… they’re all trapped inside those things…” Her voice fade as she buries her face in her hands. “It’s all my fault! Our only hope for defeating Ganon is lost all because I couldn’t harness this cursed power. Everything… Everything I’ve done up until now… it was all for nothing.” She slams her hands down on the ground and wails. “So I really am just a failure!” Her face contorts at the sudden outburst as the tears finally fall. “All my friends… the entire kingdom… my father most of all… I tried, and I failed them all.” She looks at Link as he looks back at her with concern, her face painted with colors of despair._

 

_“I left them… all to die.”_

 

_Zelda finally mourns as she wails against Link’s arm and he holds her close. What else could he do at that time? He failed as well. It was ironic how he has the Sword of Evil’s bane against his back and yet he couldn’t prevent this evil from destroying the kingdom._

 

_If anything… he was a failure, not Zelda._

 

_If he could, he would cry with her._

 

_Unfortunately, he had no tears left to cry…_

 

_He already used them on someone else._

 

_***_

 

He came out of the memory, but it wasn’t pleasant as words of negativity began to attack him from within.

 

_You’re no hero._

 

_The kingdom of Hyrule was devastated absolutely by Calamity Ganon._

 

_Don’t you have a princess you should be protecting?_

 

_The appointed knight, gravely wounded, collapsed while protecting the princess._

 

_DON’T TOUCH ME!_

 

“SHUT UP!”

 

Link’s booming clamor caused flocks of birds to cry back as they ascend into the sky. He falls to his knees while clinging onto the Slate. His face pressed against the screen and whispers through gritted teeth.

 

“Just shut up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure you leave a kudo on this work if you are enjoying it thus far if you haven't already.
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you think.
> 
> Subscribe to this work so you can keep up to date with the updates (or you know, just keep it on a different tab on your laptop/desktop computer/phone/ipad/whatever device you use to read this that's cool too - different strokes for different folks)
> 
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> 
> Thank you and I will see you next time. Bye!


	24. Cherry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry I haven't updated in so long, been kind of out of it, but now I'm back so let's go.

The place looked abandoned, yet the lights were still on inside, at least a bluish light of sorts. Link tentatively walked up the steps towards the wooden door that bears the mark of the Sheikah tribe. He looks back down at his Sheikah Slate, which keeps telling him that he is at the right place. The location even matches up with the locals’ directions, yet no one seems to be here. Should he try to get in anyways?

 

Link puts the slate back against his hip, takes a deep breath in, and lets it out. He goes ahead and knocks firmly against the door. No reply. He leans his ear against the door in hopes he could hear some sort of activity. He barely heard anything except for a few bizarre “beeping” like noises but that is all.

 

He lifts up one of his hands and adds a bit of pressure to the door. It begins to crack open, proving that the door was unlocked the whole time. He keeps pushing against it until it is wide open. He steps into the empty building with echoes copying his every footstep. He looks around to see papers and memos scattered every which way across the room and books laid about in disarray. What caught his eye was the one thing that was emulating light in the otherwise dark room. It was a vase shaped structure made out of material similar to what the shrines seem to be made of with a wide head and stubs on each side of the head. Each stub also sported a ring and bright blue coils around the stubs. It had two big, circular bulges with small rectangular cuts in them to represent eyes along with a jagged cut below it. Each cut was also so the bright blue light from the inside could show itself off to the world.

 

Link takes caution as he approaches it. He lifts his head up to touch it only for it to start beeping. He retracts his hand as it begins to attempt to form words out of it robotic, broken voice.

 

“I… it’s… an… it’s-“

 

“Ah ha! We caught you now, intruder!”

 

An orange light spreads across the room as an oil lamp is finally lit from behind. Link quickly turns towards the voice only to feel his heart leap up all the way to his throat. Standing before him is a young woman with golden locks in a hairstyle that consisted of both a top knot and hair down to frame her face and cover the back of her neck. She has intimidating blue eyes that were emphasize with heavy amounts of blue eyeshadow. Her eyes were narrow in a state of alert as she holds a book up in the air ready to strike. Next to her is a man way shorter than her with white hair stick out dramatically around his old, wrinkly face. The man, unlike the woman, wore goggles to cover his eyes made out of bits and bobs with two bead shape blue orbs acting as eyes that would spin and swirl sporadically in every direction. Link wouldn’t be scared of the man, except for the fact that he was hoping a two-handed weapon with blue light shaped as spikes spinning rapidly while wearing an eager smile on his face.

 

These people looked like Sheikah. They wear clothes similar to the Sheikah. The Sheikah were his allies.

 

So why were they ready to hit him, much less kill him?

 

“You’re dead!- What a minute…” The elder man lets his robotic eyes fixate themselves onto Link’s body. “Are you… the one they call Link?”

 

“…Y-Yes.” Link’s responds in almost a squeak.

 

“My word…” The old man pushes a button on the handle, causing the jagged light to fade, and sets the weapon to the side. The man walks over to Link and looks him up and down from head to toe.

 

“Hm… Hmmmm….. HHHHMMMMMM” Robbie kept thinking outlaid as he examines Link. “You do look like him… but how can I know you are actually Link?”

 

“Um-“

 

“No, no there is only one definite way… Link, if you really are Link, I demand you to take your clothes off."

 

“WHAT?!”

 

“Go on, take your shirt off, show me your scars. That way, I can confirm that you are indeed the real Link.”

 

“I-uh-“ Link’s whole face all the way to the tips of his ears has turn beet red in embarrassment. He shuts his eyes tightly as he quickly takes off his equipment, tunic, and undershirt, praying that this will all be over soon.

 

“Hmm… Yes, the number of scars on your body…” Robbie adjusts his goggles with a smile, “just as I remember them. Most of them have healed quite well… but the remaining, more prominent ones match up with the ones you acquired after the Great Calamity.” Robbie looks up at Link. “Yes, I acknowledge you as the real Link.

 

Link sighs in relief as he puts his clothes back on at lightning speed.

 

“Now, let me introduce myself properly. I am the lead Guardian researcher and director of the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab. Doctttoooorrrrr…” Robbie begins to march in place as he lengthens the duration of his name. “Robbie!” He points his finger up in the air dramatically as his beady goggle eyes go crazy. Goddesses, what did Link get himself into?

 

Robbie eventually snaps out of his dramatic stance and clears his throat before continually. “Anyways, I’m surprised you were even able to find us. Who told you about us?”

 

“Dorian from Kakariko Village.”

 

“I’ll be damned… I thought Purah was gonna spill the beans before anyone else. Anyways, have you met the old bag yet?”

 

“Uuuuuhhhh…” Link scratches the back of his neck. “I met a child named Purah in Hateno.”

 

“Purah has a child? Well sue me, I never thought the old bat would get married, must less have a child. Naming the kid after her, that sounds like something she would do she’s so-“

 

“No, no. Purah… is the child.”

 

There’s a long moment of silence that spreads across the room before Robbie bursts out into laughter. “Oh, that’s Purah for ya, always getting herself into such crazy situations due to her experiments. Let me guess, de-aging experiment gone wrong?”

 

“Pretty much.”

 

“Yep, that’s Purah for you. Anyways, I’m not like her. I don’t do experiments that I know have a high risk of going wrong, and unlike her, I don’t study the Sheikah Slate instead,” there’s a gleam in his beady eyes as his voice lowers in excitement, “I plan to assist you in taking down the damn Calamity with weapons of mass destruction.” He smile goes crazy for a second before he goes back to “normal”. “And by weapons of mass destruction, I mean weapons that can effectively destroy a Guardian of course.”

 

“…Of course.” Link wanted to leave, but knew it wasn’t wise to, even if the old man’s ambitions are quite… extreme.

 

“Anyways Cherry-“ There’s a loud noise of a throat clearing that cuts through the room, the two men look over at the now glaring Sheikah woman. From the corner of his eye, Link sees Robbie start to sweat.

 

“I-I-I-I mean, the ancient oven, can create such weapons, but at the moment she - I mean it - cannot work without the blue flame. Light up the front of the lab with flame from the ancient furnace, and then we can talk.”

 

***

 

Thunder cracks in the sky as the door slams open. Link limps in while holding on a now water-logged torch, his clothes soaked and sticking to his skin. Even his hair which was covered up by his head is soaked.

 

“It’s… been… lit.” Link pants out, exhausted and ready to collapse onto the floor.

 

“Ah yes! I knew you could do it! Now Che- the ancient oven, can resume production.”

 

“Why do you call her Cherry?”

 

“Hm? What? I don’t know what you are talking about.” Robbie laughs nervously as he looks at his wife whose face is twisted in jealousy. Robbie finally leans up and whispers in Link’s ear. “The ancient oven was named Cherry after a girl I loved before the Great Calamity. My first love you could say. Best not to say that name in front of my wife got it?”

 

“Got it."

 

Robbie moves away from Link. "I’m so glad we established that it’s the ancient oven and is totally not called anything else!” He laughs this off as his wife rolls her eyes and goes back to reading her book.

 

“Anyways,” Link tries to stop it from getting anymore awkward. “What does she - I mean - it make in terms of weapons?”

 

“Easy, deadly ones like the ancient arrow, a favorite of mine that can kill a guardian in one shot, along with this,” Robbie lifts up the two-handed weapon from earlier and turns it back on, revealing the blue, spinning spikes once again. Link’s eyes widen while Robbie once again carries his signature “crazy smile”.

 

“You like it? I call it the Ancient Bladesaw. Here you can borrow it if you wish-“

 

“No! No! Th-that’s fine, you can keep it.”

 

Robbie mutters “you’re no fun” under his breath before turning off the bladesaw and sets it back down on his research table. “Anyways, you’ve done us a service Link. Please, stay the night and get into some dry clothes.”

 

“That won’t be necessary doctor. I should be going.”

 

“Oh, come on now, what’s the hurry?”

 

“Sorry, it’s just… I promised someone that I would see them again in about a week. I would like to keep to my word.” Link goes to grab onto the door handle but Robbie jumps in front of him.

 

“Don’t go outside! Not when it’s raining and thunder storming like that outside. Come on, just wait until the storm is gone, it’ll give you enough time to dry off. We make plans against the Calamity while we’re at it.”

 

Link looks down and clenches his fist, knowing the elder had a point. There was no use in him getting sick after all.

 

“…Fine.”

 

***

 

The storm cleared out in a couple of hours, allowing for the night skies to be clear. Robbie and his wife, who he found out goes by the name Jerrin, stood outside to say goodbye to Link.

 

“Goodbye Link, have a safe journey.” Jerrin speaks like a worried mother.

 

“Don’t worry Jerrin I’ll be okay.”

 

She smiles solemnly before going back inside, leaving Robbie and Link by themselves. Link looks back at the old doctor, finding that their few hours together was quite relaxing, and he even began to respect and find the old man’s craziness likable and special in its own way.

 

“Thank you again, doctor.”

 

“No, no we should be thanking you Link.” Robbie goes up to him and places a bundle of special arrows in Link’s hands. “Here are the ancient arrows I was talking about earlier. Take them, on the house. I know they will be useful in the future.”

 

“Thank you.” Link puts them up in a pouch that is safety secured to Epona’s saddle.

 

“Oh, and one more thing, Link”

 

“What is it?”

 

Robbie looks back at the door to the lab that is tightly shut before continuing, “what is your relationship with this someone? I mean… they must mean something to you considering you promised them such a thing”

 

Link bites his bottom lip as he tries to come up with the right words.

 

“It’s… complicated… I guess-“

 

“Do you see them like how I use to see Cherry?”

 

Link lets his mouth drop open at the statement. He tries to speak but no words come out. His mouth eventually closes as he clenches his teeth, finding it best to just answer with a shrug.

 

“I suppose it was a bit bold of me to ask such a personal question. Forgive me.”

 

“No, no it’s fine Robbie… actually, can I ask something?”

 

“Sure”

 

“You knew me before the Calamity… do you remember… if I ever did have feelings for someone?… You know… was there anyone I saw as my own Cherry?”

 

The blues in Robbie’s robotic goggles faded for a second before Robbie let out a sigh. “No… but I do know one thing…” he takes a hold of Link’s sleeve in a gesture of comfort. “I was never allowed to go further with my emotions towards Cherry considering my research was top priority… at one time you had the titles of appointed knight to the Princess of Hyrule and Hylian Champion… I have no doubt that you didn’t have time to explore such emotions, much less experience it, and if you did well… your amnesia is doing a good job covering it up.” Robbie takes his other hand that isn’t holding onto Link’s sleeve and pokes it against his chest where one of his more prominent scars resides underneath his tunic. “Usually, when one receives such scars on their body… they leave lasting memories in their mind as well.” Robbie lets go of Link and turns towards the starry night with the corners of his lips curved firmly downward. 

 

“Perhaps Link your amnesia… is for the better.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Link, if you really are Link, I demand you to take your clothes off."
> 
> -Robbie
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you guys again for reading this fanfic. I know this isn't -exactly- how you meet Robbie in game, but I thought this retelling of the meeting is much funnier and kinda goes better with Robbie's eccentric yet serious and genius personality (he always gave me "mad scientist" vibes so might as well embrace it).
> 
> Make sure you leave a kudo on this work if you are enjoying it thus far if you haven't already.
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you think.
> 
> Subscribe to this work so you can keep up to date with the updates 
> 
> Follow me on tumblr (https://melodic-gamer.tumblr.com/) where I post more content and updates regarding this fanfic. Feel free as well to go on there and ask me anything.
> 
> Thank you and I will see you next time. Bye!


	25. Hidden in the Petals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow... it has been... over three months since I last updated...
> 
> I am honestly so sorry guys, life just happened and the next thing I knew I looked at my calendar in shock at how time flies (blame Link's Awakening for taking my time as well as work(you can also blame fire emblem three houses for taking my time(btw once I finish all the routes in three houses, expect content soon from that ;) got ideas for my boy Claude Von Riegan)
> 
> My writing is gonna be rusty (and this chapter is shorter than I have wanted) but we're are back from the hiatus. I will try to have a regular update schedule asap.
> 
> Thank you everyone who have been patiently waiting for this chapter. You, my dear readers, are awesome and what motivated me to even go back to finish this. For about a week I've been afraid to update in case everyone left thinking "welp another fanfic that will never be finished."
> 
> No, we're gonna finish this, even if writing this fanfic takes away the last two brain cells I have.
> 
> Anyways here is the long awaited chapter 25.

The night presents a cold breeze, causing everyone to stay inside for tonight, except for one.

 

(Y/n) stands by the body of water by the shrine, wearing nothing more than a short sleeved nightgown. She frowns as she feels more of the soft dirt wiggled its way in-between her bare toes. She wraps her arms around herself tighter and shivers as the air hits her exposed legs and arms.

 

“Cold?”

 

She flinches and stops herself from screaming as she hears the familiar voice coming from the lake.

 

“D-Don’t scare me like that.” She mutters through chattering teeth.

 

The voice chuckles. (Y/n) looks down at the lake, hoping to see her own reflection, but is instead greeted by the reflection of her former self in spirit form.

 

“Neat isn’t it? It seems I can now communicate to you through reflective surfaces.”

 

“I guess it’s…neat…”

 

The figure turns a shade a blue that matches the color of the water, making her almost invisible.

 

“What’s wrong? I sense bitterness in your voice.”

 

(Y/n) bites the inside of her mouth as she lets her toes sink deeper into the earth. 

 

“It’s been... a little over a week now,” (y/n) finally voices out.

 

The image in the water goes back to her normal default lavender color, but has the look of pain painted on her face. “I am sorry.”

 

“Why are you apologizing? You have no control over him.”

 

“Still-“

 

“It’s fine. Probably got caught up in some ‘heroic’ thing or something,” (y/n) sneers before turning her back on the watery reflection. The sound of the waterfall is the only thing that prevents the harsh silence.

 

“...Pretty...aren’t they?”

 

(Y/n) looks over her shoulder with annoyance in her eyes. “What is?”

 

“The violets by the waterfall.” (Y/n) didn’t have to look to know that her former self has a smile of admiration. Instead she looks at the cliff where the water cuts through, and how purple flowers were popping up from cracks in the rocks.

 

(Y/n) sighs as she takes in the sight. “Why are these your favorite flowers?”

 

The woman hums, “is finding them pretty not a good enough reason?”

 

“I mean… I guess that can be a reason, but knowing you - and in a way myself - I know there must be more to it than just beauty.”

 

She nods, “I suppose you are right.” She pauses and closes her eyes in memory. “Back in my time, Hylians were very zealous about flower symbolism with some flowers having healing properties.”

 

“People still believe in flower symbolism.”

 

“They do?”

 

(Y/n) turns her whole body now to face her past self,” Well I mean, a few, people these days really only pay attention to flowers if they are edible,” (Y/n) cast her eyes downward, “we’re all just trying to get by…but people still go out of their way to find the rare Silent Princess. It’s a symbol of true love after all.”

 

_Of course it is, because it was the princess’s favorite flower._

 

(Y/n) eyes widen in surprise as she hears Thea’s thoughts. She looks at the woman in the lake who has turned to a deep emerald with clashes of bright red.

 

“Thea?”

 

Thea’s gasps as she goes back to the default lavender. “S-Sorry. I-I don’t know what came over me… A-Anyways… it’s normal for rarities to be paid more attention to. The swift violet, for example, is rare to the people who lived in Central Hyrule since it only grows on cliff sides.”

 

“What’s the meaning behind the violet?”

 

“One meaning is of purity. After all, unlike other flowers that grow together on fields, they grows and blooms alone. All they know is the cliff they were raised on. Another is of strength and persistence. Despite the cliff having little to no nutrients to the flower, they find a way by growing in the cracks filled with soil.”

 

***

 

“Oh ho Link! Thank you again! What are the odds you would find a Goron who also had -son at the end of his name?”

 

“You’re welcome Hudson. I’m sorry to leave so soon, but I have somewhere to be.”

 

“Oh no that is quite alright Link! Just make sure you come back and visit soon. This place is definitely gonna look -way- better when you come back now that I have Grayson.”

 

Link turns to walk back to Epona as Hudson takes out a notebook to write something down with a stubby piece of charcoal. Link watches from the corner of his eye as Hudson closes the notebook.

 

“Did you make that yourself?”

 

“Huh?” Hudson turns around to face Link. “Oh no, I could never make something this nice. No, Bolson gave it to me as a good luck gift,” he raises it up to show Link the front cover of the notebook, “isn’t it nice? He even put a pressed violet on the cover.”

 

Link’s breathe hitches as he feels his body become infected with nostalgia.

 

“Link? Are you okay?”

 

Link clenches his sweaty fist with nails digging deep into the skin. Every time he breathes, his face becomes paler. “Wh-Why… why a violet of all flowers?”

 

“Oh ha ha well… Bolson was always a man who loved the flowers and their meanings. I didn’t pay attention to it, too much nonsense. Why waste your time admiring a flower if you can’t fill your belly with it? Anyways Bolson said something like ‘it represents perseverance, so don’t go giving up on your dream you silly man!’” Bolson chuckles to himself. “He has a point… if you really love something whether it’s a person or a dream, you wouldn’t want to give up on it. You would want to stick with it.” Hudson finishes speaking and looks at the world around him and how it is filled with heavy boulders and barren land.

 

Link’s voice, despite being soft, was like a sword cutting through the still air. “Even if the odds are against you?”

 

Hudson nods. “Even if the odds are against me.”

 

***

 

“How does strength and purity correlate?”

 

“What do you mean (Y/n)?”

 

“You can only get stronger if you have experience. Purity is like - like a baby. A baby can’t fight for themselves. They’re weak.”

 

“You are only viewing strength as an outward trait, but inner strength is still a thing.”

 

“But purity doesn’t know the harsh reality of the world. It’s weak compared to knowledge. While purity retains innocence, it also displays ignorance.”

 

“Purity is only ignorant to a pessimistic view of the world. It knows nothing of cruelty, therefore it still reaches it goals filled with nothing but eagerness. For the violet, it is to bloom into a beautiful flower.”

 

“But-“

 

“Purity and knowledge comes with different strengths, but neither is weak. Which is why we cannot have both at once, but they also can’t exist without each other.” Thea looks away from her present self in regret. “Trust me. I know that fact all too well.”

 

“Thea-“

 

“Think of our life like a flower’s life. Specifically, the violet. We begin life as pure. We begin as nothing but a seed. Our purity is what gives us a one track mind that helps us focus on only growing up. We grow little by little while our knowledge of the outside world is seldom. Then, it comes time for us to become saplings and break through. Once we see the outside, we realize that nothing is perfect. There will be days that give us too much rain or sun. We might even see other flowers wilt around us. We gain this knowledge and lose the innocence we once knew as a seed. But with this knowledge of hardships, we can either wilt from it or push forward towards a beautiful blossom.”

 

Thea takes a deep breath in and lets it out in a form of a sigh. “Remember how I said that people back in the day believed in the healing properties of some flowers?”

 

(Y/n) gives a nod, her lips unable to find the words.

 

“Swift Violets were one of the flowers believed to have healing properties. It was believed that when their dried up petals were crushed into a fine powder and mixed with honey it would become an effective salve to speed up the healing process of wounds. The salve was also believed to make scars fade and become practically non existent despite how old the scar was.”

 

“Thea?”

 

“Yes (Y/n)?” The reflection of her former self looks up at her as the water shimmers from the moonlight.

 

(Y/n) hesitates, wondering if she really wants to know, “there’s more to this… isn’t there.”

 

Thea laughs as she turns a dim blue. “I guess you can’t lie to yourself.” She looks up at the moon as it rises higher in the sky. “Back in the day...many flowers other than the silent princess...symbolize love and the many types of love...the swift violent...symbolize a love with many obstacles, whether it’s the world against the couple or the couple against each other...but, as I explained to you before, the primary meaning of the violet is strength through a pure or tainted mindset...If the couple had a huge argument, one can offer the other a violet as a way to ask forgiveness from the other, hoping the moment of weakness won’t affect their love. Accepting the flower is telling the giver you forgive them and promising that the moment of weakness will only make the love stronger. During a love confession, if the confessor gives their beloved a violet it’s almost as if they are saying to them-” Thea stops speaking to look up at (Y/n). Her eyes shine a look of distress as (Y/n) feels her chest begin to tighten. Thea’s usual surreal voice is now shaky. “Y-You’re almost s-saying to them… ‘I have seen you at your best and at your worst. There have, and still will be, many hardships that wish to separate us, but no matter what I won’t let you go. Losing you is worse than any other pain I have dealt and will deal with. I will help heal your open wounds and old scars. If the wounds and scars refuse to fade, I will still love you. I will stick with you no matter what.’ “

 

(Y/n)’s voice, despite being soft, was like a sword cutting through the still air. “Even if the odds are against you?”

 

Thea nods. “Even if the odds are against me.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Cause I know... somewhere deep down in my heart... I still love you."
> 
> -That one guy in that intervention episode right before the crying meme
> 
>  
> 
> Once again guys thank you so so SO much for your patience for this chapter you guys are awesome!
> 
> Make sure you leave a kudo on this work if you are enjoying it thus far if you haven't already.
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you think.
> 
> Subscribe to this work so you can keep up to date with the updates
> 
> Follow me on tumblr (https://melodic-gamer.tumblr.com/) where I post more content and updates regarding this fanfic. Feel free as well to go on there and ask me anything.
> 
> Thank you and I will see you next time. Bye!


End file.
